Removal and fate of microplastics in permeable pavements: An experimental layer-by-layer analysis

The increasing prevalence of microplastics (MP) in urban environments has raised concerns over their negative effects on ecosystems and human health. Stormwater runoff, and road dust and sediment, act as major vectors of these pollutants into natural water bodies. Sustainable urban drainage systems, such as permeable pavements, are considered as potential tools to retain particulate pollutants. This research evaluates at laboratory scale the efficiency of permeable interlocking concrete pavements (PICP) and porous concrete pavements (PCP) for controlling microplastics, including tire wear particles (TWP) which constitute a large fraction of microplastics in urban environments, simulating surface pollution accumulation and Mediterranean rainfall conditions. Microplastic levels in road dust and sediments and stormwater runoff inputs were 4762 ± 974 MP/kg (dry weight) and 23.90 ± 17.40 MP/L. In infiltrated effluents, microplastic levels ranged from 2.20 ± 0.61 to 5.17 ± 1.05 MP/L; while tire wear particle levels ranged between 0.28 ± 0.28 and 3.30 ± 0.89 TWP/L. Distribution of microplastics within the layers of PICP and PCP were also studied and quantified. Microplastics tend to accumulate on the pavements surface and in geotextile layers, allowing microplastic retention efficiencies from 89 % to 99.6 %. Small sized (< 0.1 mm) fragment shaped microplastics are the most common in effluent samples. The results indicate that permeable pavements are a powerful tool to capture microplastics and tire wear particles, especially by surface and geotextile layers. The study aims to shed light on the complex mobilisation mechanisms of microplastics, providing valuable insights for addressing the growing environmental concern of microplastic pollution in urban areas.This research is developed within the framework of the projects ENGODRAIN (grant number RTI2018-094217-B-C31) and SUDSLong-VLC (grant number PID2021-122946OB-C32) funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by “ERDF A way of making Europe”. Eduardo García Haba appreciates the pre-doctoral contracts funding received for doctors training (Ref. PRE2019-089409) funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by “ESF Investing in your future”

The role of keeping "semantic blocks" invariant: effects in linear genetic programming performance

This paper is focused on two different approaches (previously proposed by the authors) that perform better than Genetic Programming in typical symbolic regression problems: straight-line program genetic programming (SLP-GP) and evolution with attribute grammars (AGE). Both approaches have different characteristics. One of themost important is that SLP-GP keeps semantic blocks invariant (the crossover operator always exchanges complete subexpressions). In this paper we compare both methods and study the possible effect on their performance of keeping these blocks invariant.This work was partially supported by the R&D program of the Community of Madrid (S2009/TIC-1650, project “e-Madrid”) as well as by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (TIN2007-67466-C02-02). The authors thank Dr. Manuel Alfonseca for his help to prepare this document

Subjective well-being of young people in therapeutic residential care from a gender perspective

A growing body of research focus on subjective well-being (SWB) in adolescence; however there are few studies focus specifcally on the residential care population and even fewer on diferences by type of residential facility separately for males and females. This study aims to analyze SWB in therapeutic residential care (a residential program created to address youths with severe emotional and behavioral problems) in relation to young people in other kinds of residential child care (RCC). 567 adolescents aged 14-18 from Therapeutic Residential Care (TRC) (n=256) and RCC (n=311) participated in the study. Results showed few signifcant diferences concerning the residential program factor. Satisfaction with their own family was greater for young people in TRC and satisfaction, both with the groups they belong to and with their own residential facility, rated higher among the RCC group. Regarding diferences by sex, females reported less SWB in all the domains including overall life satisfaction. The efect of the interaction between sex and type of residential program showed that females in TRC reported SWB, particularly low. The main implications for research and intervention will be discussed.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. This research study was supported by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) of Spain through the National Plan of I + D + i (PSI2015-65229-R and PSI2012-33185). The author Alba Águila-Otero holds a post-doctoral scholarship from the Severo Ochoa Program for Training in Research and Teaching in the Principality of Asturias (BP16061)

¿Qué queda de mí?

Este libro es una reclamación a quienes hemos sido, somos o seremos docentes. A quienes no hemos respetado a las personas que se han puesto junto a nosotros y nosotras, confiando su bien más preciado: la libertad. Estas páginas denuncian cada vez que convertimos una visión en la visión, una emoción en la emoción, un saber en el saber, un comportamiento en el comportamiento. Es un grito contra la imposición, la normalización, la neutralización y la universalización de una perspectiva particular. Una pugna contra cada proceso que no se ha conectado con las vidas de los aprendices. Un texto colaborativo realizado por alumnado de Educación y Cambio Social en el Grado en Educación Infantil de la Universidad de Málaga y coordinado por Ignacio Calderón Almendros

Risk Factors for COVID-19 in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A National, ENEIDA-Based Case–Control Study (COVID-19-EII)

(1) Scant information is available concerning the characteristics that may favour the acquisition of COVID-19 in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess these differences between infected and noninfected patients with IBD. (2) This nationwide case-control study evaluated patients with inflammatory bowel disease with COVID-19 (cases) and without COVID-19 (controls) during the period March-July 2020 included in the ENEIDA of GETECCU. (3) A total of 496 cases and 964 controls from 73 Spanish centres were included. No differences were found in the basal characteristics between cases and controls. Cases had higher comorbidity Charlson scores (24% vs. 19%; p = 0.02) and occupational risk (28% vs. 10.5%; p < 0.0001) more frequently than did controls. Lockdown was the only protective measure against COVID-19 (50% vs. 70%; p < 0.0001). No differences were found in the use of systemic steroids, immunosuppressants or biologics between cases and controls. Cases were more often treated with 5-aminosalicylates (42% vs. 34%; p = 0.003). Having a moderate Charlson score (OR: 2.7; 95%CI: 1.3-5.9), occupational risk (OR: 2.9; 95%CI: 1.8-4.4) and the use of 5-aminosalicylates (OR: 1.7; 95%CI: 1.2-2.5) were factors for COVID-19. The strict lockdown was the only protective factor (OR: 0.1; 95%CI: 0.09-0.2). (4) Comorbidities and occupational exposure are the most relevant factors for COVID-19 in patients with IBD. The risk of COVID-19 seems not to be increased by immunosuppressants or biologics, with a potential effect of 5-aminosalicylates, which should be investigated further and interpreted with caution

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

The evolution of the ventilatory ratio is a prognostic factor in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 ARDS patients

Background: Mortality due to COVID-19 is high, especially in patients requiring mechanical ventilation. The purpose of the study is to investigate associations between mortality and variables measured during the first three days of mechanical ventilation in patients with COVID-19 intubated at ICU admission. Methods: Multicenter, observational, cohort study includes consecutive patients with COVID-19 admitted to 44 Spanish ICUs between February 25 and July 31, 2020, who required intubation at ICU admission and mechanical ventilation for more than three days. We collected demographic and clinical data prior to admission; information about clinical evolution at days 1 and 3 of mechanical ventilation; and outcomes. Results: Of the 2,095 patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU, 1,118 (53.3%) were intubated at day 1 and remained under mechanical ventilation at day three. From days 1 to 3, PaO2/FiO2 increased from 115.6 [80.0-171.2] to 180.0 [135.4-227.9] mmHg and the ventilatory ratio from 1.73 [1.33-2.25] to 1.96 [1.61-2.40]. In-hospital mortality was 38.7%. A higher increase between ICU admission and day 3 in the ventilatory ratio (OR 1.04 [CI 1.01-1.07], p = 0.030) and creatinine levels (OR 1.05 [CI 1.01-1.09], p = 0.005) and a lower increase in platelet counts (OR 0.96 [CI 0.93-1.00], p = 0.037) were independently associated with a higher risk of death. No association between mortality and the PaO2/FiO2 variation was observed (OR 0.99 [CI 0.95 to 1.02], p = 0.47). Conclusions: Higher ventilatory ratio and its increase at day 3 is associated with mortality in patients with COVID-19 receiving mechanical ventilation at ICU admission. No association was found in the PaO2/FiO2 variation

Ahora / Ara

La cinquena edició del microrelatari per l’eradicació de la violència contra les dones de l’Institut Universitari d’Estudis Feministes i de Gènere «Purificación Escribano» de la Universitat Jaume I vol ser una declaració d’esperança. Aquest és el moment en el qual les dones (i els homes) hem de fer un pas endavant i eliminar la violència sistèmica contra les dones. Ara és el moment de denunciar el masclisme i els micromasclismes començant a construir una societat més igualitària. Cadascun dels relats del llibre és una denúncia i una declaració que ens encamina cap a un món millor

VCFWeb: Aplicación web para el filtrado de variantes en formato VCF y diseño de estrategias para su priorización e integración con distintos tipos de datos

Las nuevas estrategias de secuenciación del ADN, como (NGS, Next-Generation Sequencing) permiten a los genetistas identificar rápidamente las variaciones genéticas en muchos genomas humanos. Sin embargo, ser capaz de aislar unas pocas variantes que puedan ser causales de enfermedad, sigue siendo un desafío importante para la genética médica. El formato de archivo estándar para contener llamadas de variante es el archivo VCF (variant call format). Este formato, no es fácilmente manejable, ya que contiene información muy diversa y resulta complicado representar las variantes de forma plana. Además se trabaja con grandes volúmenes de datos, y los recursos son limitados. Mediante la elaboración de un parseador de ficheros en formato VCF, obtenido a partir de las lecturas en crudo de diversas secuencias, se genera una estructura de datos que es explotada desde una herramienta web, que se desarrolla también como parte del proyecto. Como resultado se obtiene una aplicación web intuitiva y eficiente para los investigadores del CNIC (Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares), para intentar reducir al máximo posible el número de variantes tras pasar por los procesos de filtrado y priorización. Dependiendo del tipo de enfermedad, se llegará a unas pocas variantes candidatas potencialmente causales de enfermedad, y esto permitirá, en ocasiones, tomar medidas de prevención antes de que aparezcan los primeros síntomas, pudiendo en algunos casos evitar o reducir considerablemente la enfermedad.New DNA sequencing strategies, such as (NGS, Next-Generation Sequencing) allow geneticists to quickly identify genetic variations in many human genomes. However, being able to isolate a few variants that may be causative of disease continues to be a major challenge for medical genetics. The standard file format for containing variant calls is the VCF file (variant call format). This format is not easily manageable, since it contains very diverse information and it is difficult to represent the variants in a flat way. Furthermore, we work with large volumes of data, and resources are limited. Through the elaboration of a VCF file parser, obtained from the raw reads of sequences of different characteristics, a data structure is generated and it is exploited from a web tool, which is also developed as part of the project. As a result, an intuitive and efficient web application for CNIC researchers (National Center for Cardiovascular Research) has been obtained, as an attempt to reduce the number of variants as much as possible after passing through the filtering and prioritizing processes. The researcher will obtain, depending on the type of disease, a few candidate variants potentially causative of illness, and this will allow, on occasions, to take preventive measures before the first symptoms appear, being able in some cases to avoid or considerably reduce the disease.Les noves estratègies de seqüenciació de l'ADN, com (NGS, Next-Generation Sequencing) permeten als genetistes identificar ràpidament les variacions genètiques en molts genomes humans. No obstant això, ser capaç d'aïllar unes poques variants que puguin ser causals de malaltia, segueix sent un desafiament important per a la genètica metgessa. El format d'arxiu estàndard per contenir trucades de variant és l'arxiu VCF (variant call format). Aquest format, no és fàcilment manejable, ja que conté informació molt diversa i resulta complicat representar les variants de forma plana. A més es treballa amb grans volums de dades, i els recursos són limitats. Mitjançant l'elaboració d'un parseador de fitxers en format VCF, obtingut a partir de les lectures en cru de diverses seqüències, es genera una estructura de dades que és explotada des d'una eina web, que es desenvolupa també com a part del projecte. Com a resultat s'obté una aplicació web intuïtiva i eficient per als investigadors del CNIC (Centre Nacional de Recerques Cardiovasculars), per intentar reduir al màxim possible el nombre de variants després de passar pels processos de filtrat i priorització. Depenent del tipus de malaltia, s'arribarà a unes poques variants candidates potencialment causals de malaltia, i això permetrà, en ocasions, prendre mesures de prevenció abans que apareguin els primers símptomes, podent en alguns casos evitar o reduir considerablement la malaltia

First record of the cirripede Anelasma squalicola Darwin, 1852 (Pollicipedidae) in the Mediterranean Sea

Anelasma squalicola Darwin 1852, is a barnacle that occurs on elasmobranchs from the Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic and Indian Ocean. It infects sharks of the families Etmopteridae and Pentanchidae. The barnacle attaches sub-dermally to its hosts, relying on its interstitial fluid for its nourishment. Herein we present the first record of this species in the Mediterranean Sea, from Etmopterus spinax (Linnaeus, 1758) caught during a bottom-trawl survey in the Alboran Sea (western Mediterranean) in 2017. The overall prevalence of infection was very low (0.22%). The calculated HSI index for the parasitized individual was lower compared to overall means of other individuals and could indicate a potential physiological alteration in the host.Peer reviewe