Molluscan assemblages associated with photophilous algae in the Alboran sea (western Mediterranean Sea)

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Efficacy in reducing dentine hypersensitivity of a regimen using a toothpaste containing 8% arginine and calcium carbonate, a mouthwash containing 0.8% arginine, pyrophosphate and PVM/MA copolymer and a toothbrush compared to potassium and negative control regimens: An eight-week randomized clinical trial

Objective Evaluate the efficacy of three regimens integrating toothpaste, toothbrush and mouthwash in reducing dentine hypersensitivity. Methods Eight-week single-centre, three-cell, double-blind, randomized study was conducted in the Dominican Republic. Subjects entered one of the three regimens: (1) toothpaste containing 8% arginine and 1450 ppm mono-fluorophosphate, in a calcium carbonate base, a soft-bristle toothbrush followed by a mouthwash containing 0.8% arginine, PVM/MA copolymer, pyrophosphates, and 0.05% sodium fluoride; (2) toothpaste containing 5% potassium nitrate and 1450 ppm sodium fluoride, a soft-bristle toothbrush, followed by a mouthwash containing 0.51% potassium chloride and 230 ppm sodium fluoride; and (3) toothpaste containing 1450 ppm mono-fluorophosphate, a soft-bristle toothbrush followed by a fluoride/arginine free mouthwash. Tactile and Air-Blast dentine hypersensitivity measurements were performed at baseline, two, four, and eight weeks. For treatment group comparisons, ANCOVA and post hoc Tukey's pair-wise (α = 0.05) were used. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis was performed to evaluate Time to Treatment Improvement. Results 120 subjects were enrolled, 118 completed the study. The Tactile hypersensitivity mean scores showed statistically significant improvement at two, four and eight (p ≤ 0.001) weeks in the arginine regime; the potassium regime did not show significant (p ≥ 0.05) improvement. Air-Blast Hypersensitivity scores had a statistically significant decrease at two (p = 0.006), four (p = 0.006) and eight (p = 0.002) weeks in arginine and potassium regimes (p ≤ 0.05). The most effective treatment proved to be arginine (p ≤ 0.05) compared to the potassium regime. Conclusion Arginine regimen provided the greatest reduction in Tactile and Air-Blast dentine hypersensitivity compared to potassium and negative control regimens; and provides faster dentine hypersensitivity relief than potassium regimen.Colgate-Palmolive Company///Estados UnidosUCR::Vicerrectoría de Docencia::Salud::Facultad de Odontologí

Contrasting molluscan fauna collected with beam trawl and otter trawl in circalittoral and bathyal soft bottoms of the northern Alboran Sea

The Alboran Sea display complex oceanographic, geological, ecological and biological processes, promoting a high biodiversity and complexity (Robles, 2010). On the other hand, molluscs constitute one of the most diverse and best represented invertebrate groups in this area, representing an important component of soft bottom communities, as well as the second group in abundance and biomass in demersal fisheries, with species of ecological and commercial importance worldwide (Gofas et all., 2011). The study of the molluscan assemblages is important where trawling fishing fleets operate, in order to improve fisheries assessment and move forward to an ecosystem based approach, which takes into account other components of the fishery than the target species such as non-target and protected species and habitats (Pikitch et al., 2004). Information collected on fisheries assemblages may introduce a bias depending on the fraction of the assemblage (e.g. demersal, epifaunal, infaunal) at which the sampling method is targeted, particularly in a group such as molluscs with a high variability in life strategies. The aims of this study are 1) to increase the scarce knowledge on the composition and structure of molluscan assemblages of circalittoral and bathyal soft bottoms of the Alboran Sea; and 2) to compare the information obtained on these assemblages by using two different types of sampling gears, the beam trawl and the otter trawl. During the MEDITS trawl surveys (springs 2014 and 2015) a beam trawl (BT) (horizontal opening 1.3 x vertical opening 1.2 m, mesh size 10 mm) and an otter trawl (OT)(GOC 73) (2.5 x 21.5 m , mesh size 20 mm) were used in 35 sampling stations at depths from 40 to 800 m in the Alboran Sea. Catches were sorted to species and their individuals counted and weighed. The molluscan assemblages and species were characterized according to their dominance (%Da) and frequency of occurrence (%F). Multivariate analyses using the Bray-Curtis index were performed with presence/absence species data and quantitative data obtained with each method were standardized to a similar sampling area. ANOSIM was used for testing the differences between groups of samples according to different factors (depth and sampling type) and SIMPER for the contribution of the different species to these factors using PRIMER v6. The characterization of the different types of sampling and assemblages was done with the species richness and statistical differences tested with Kruskal-Wallis using SPSS software. A total of 170 spp. have been collected, with 69 species collected in OT samples, mostly cephalopods (26 spp., 37.68%), followed by gastropods (25 spp., 36.23%) and bivalves (18 species, 26.10% total species of OT), being the latter the most abundant group. The top-dominant species were the bivalve Neopycnodonte cochlear and the cephalopod Alloteuthis media, whereas the most frequent ones were the cephalopods Octopus vulgaris, Todarodes sagittatus and Illex coindetii (Fig. 1 ). In beam trawl samples, 135 spp. of 6 classes were found, being gastropods the most diverse and abundant one (69 spp., 51.11% total species of BT), followed by bivalves (49 spp., 36.3%) and cephalopods (15 spp., 11.11%). The top-dominant species were the gastropods Turritella communis and Nassarius ovoideus and the bivalves Nucula sulcata and Abra longicallus, and the most frequent ones included Nucula sulcata, Nassarius ovoideus and the gastropod Euspira fusca (Figure 1). Contrasting both methods, only 20% (34 spp.) of the species were exclusively collected in OT samples (e.g. Alloteuthis spp., I. coindetii, Loligo spp., T. sagittatus) and 57% (97 spp.) in BT samples (e.g. N. ovoideus, Timoclea ovata, N. sulcata, Clelandella miliaris). Only 23% of the species (39 spp.) were collected with both methods (e.g. Venus nux, Turritella communis, N. cochlear). Figure 1. Some common and dominant mollusc of beam trawl (A-C, E-G) and otter trawl samples (D, H-J) collected in circalittoral and bathyal soft bottoms of the northern Alboran Sea. A) Turritella communis; B) Abra longicallus; C) Nassarius ovoideus; D) Illex coindeitii; E) Clelandella miliaris; F) Timoclea ovata; G) Nucula sulcata; H) Venus nux; I) Octopus vulgaris; J) Neopycnodonte cochlear. Multivariate analyses clearly separated two groups of samples, each one collected with a different sampling method, and in each grouping it revealed three main mollusks assemblages in relation to depth: I) Continental shelf (CS) (40-200 m), II) Upper slope (UCS) (201-400 m), and III) and Middle slope (MCS) (400-1800 m) (Fig. 2). Figure 2. MDS applied to presence-absence data of molluscs assemblages obtained from beam trawl and otter trawl samples collected in the northern Alboran Sea. BT: Beam trawl; OT: Otter trawl ; CS: Continental Shelf; UCS: Upper Continental Slope; MCS: Middle Continental Slope. The continental shelf assemblage in BT samples were characterized by T. ovata, N. cochlear, N. ovoideus and T. communis, whereas O. vulgaris, Eledone moschata and I. coindetii characterized the OT samples. For the upper and middle slope assemblages, E. fusca and A. longicallus characterized the BT samples, whereas T. sagittatus and Bathypolypus sponsalis characterized the OT samples. Mean values of species richness were significantly higher when using the BT. This study showed that OT nor BT samples can provide complete information on the whole molluscan assemblage, giving each sampling method complimentary information. The demersal and epi-benthic fractions of the community were better sampled using the otter trawl and the beam trawl, respectively. The estimates of infauna were higher using the beam trawl, but this information should be contrasted with data obtained from dredges in order to assess whether the beam trawl yield acceptable estimates of the abundance of these molluscs

Sampling and contaminant monitoring protocol for raptors

In May 2013 representatives from six countries gathered in Murcia, Spain, to attend the Workshop on &ldquo;Setting best practices on raptor contaminant monitoring activities in Europe&rdquo; funded by EURAPMON. The workshop developed a rough draft of the current protocol. The protocol was subsequently completed with the involvement of investigators from Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. All contributors are experts in monitoring contaminants in raptors. The aim of this sampling protocol is to provide guidance on types of best practice that will facilitate harmonisation of procedures between existing and emerging schemes and so maximise the reliability, comparability and interoperability of data.The methods here do not require use of anaesthesia on birds. This protocol covers the sampling of blood and feathers from live birds, addled and deserted eggs, internal organs and tissues from dead specimens, and other samples such as faeces, preen oil and pellets.</p

Biodiversity and benthic megafaunal communities inhabiting the Formigas Bank (NE Azores)

The Formigas Bank is an offshore seamount located in the easternmost part of the Azores archipelago (northeast Atlantic). It rises from abyssal depths to the surface, including a small set of islets. The bank holds multiple nature conservation designations, including a Natura 2000 Special Area of Conservation, an OSPAR Marine Protected Area, a RAMSAR site and a Nature Reserve declared under the Azores network of protected areas. The protection is based on the presence of sublittoral biotopes of high conservation interest, and importance as feeding grounds, spawning and nursery areas for many marine species, including fish, cetaceans and turtles. Although some information exists on the sublittoral communities occurring on the seamount summit (e.g., infralittoral Cystoseira and Laminaria beds, circalittoral hydrarian and sponge gardens, rich pelagic fauna), virtually no information was available on the deep-sea communities inhabiting the seamount flanks. Therefore, during the MEDWAVES cruise, the flanks of the Formigas bank have been surveyed using multibeam sonar, an ROV and oceanographic profiles, with the objective to characterise deep-sea biodiversity and megafaunal communities as well as the environment where they occur. This communication will present results from the video annotations of the ten dives made on the seamount slopes between ~500m and ~1,500 m depth. Diverse communities of sedentary suspension-feeding organisms were observed, with more than 20 cold-water coral species (mainly octocorals) being recorded, as well as many different sponge morphotypes. Dense coral garden habitats and sponge grounds were identified on several occasions, confirming the presence of vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) and of ecologically or biologically significant areas (EBSAs). Differences in the abundance and composition of these habitats between the northern and southern dive transects are interpreted as reflecting substrate and geomorphological differences, as well as the potential influence of the Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW). The new knowledge on deep-sea megafaunal communities reinforces the importance of this seamount as an area of high conservation interest

Cruise Summary Report - MEDWAVES survey. MEDiterranean out flow WAter and Vulnerable EcosystemS (MEDWAVES)

The MEDWAVES (MEDiterranean out flow WAter and Vulnerable EcosystemS) cruise targeted areas under the potential influence of the MOW within the Mediterranean and Atlantic realms. These include seamounts where Cold-water corals (CWCs) have been reported but that are still poorly known, and which may act as essential “stepping stones” connecting fauna of seamounts in the Mediterranean with those of the continental shelf of Portugal, the Azores and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. During MEDWAVES sampling has been conducted in two of the case studies of ATLAS: Case study 7 (Gulf of Cádiz-Strait of Gibraltar-Alboran Sea) and Case study 8 (Azores). The initially targeted areas in the Atlantic were: the Gazul Mud volcano, in the Gulf of Cádiz (GoC) area, included in the case study 7, and the Atlantic seamounts Ormonde (Portuguese shelf) and Formigas (by Azores), both part of the case study 8. In the Mediterranean the targeted areas were The Guadiaro submarine canyon and the Seco de los Olivos (also known as Chella Bank) seamount. Unfortunately it was not possible to sample in Guadiaro due to time constraints originated by adverse meteorological conditions which obligate us to reduce the time at sea focusing only in 4 of the 5 initially planned areas. MEDWAVES was structured in two legs; the first leg took place from the 21st September (departure from Cádiz harbour in Spain) to the 13th October 2016 (arrival in Ponta Delgada, São Miguel, Azores, Portugal took place the 8th of October due to the meteorological conditions that obligated to conclude the first leg earlier as planned). during the Leg 1 sampling was carried out in Gazul, Ormonde and Formigas. The second leg started the 14th October (departure from Ponta Delgada) and finished the 26th October (arrival in Málaga harbour, Spain). MEDWAVES had a total of 30 effective sampling days, being 6 days not operative due to the adverse meteorological conditions experienced during the first leg which forced us to stay in Ponta Delgada from the 08th to the 13th October. During MEDWAVES the daily routine followed a similar scheme, depending of course on the weather and sea conditions. The main activity during the day, starting early in the morning (around 08:00 AM, once the night activities were finished), was the ROV deployment. Generally a single ROV dive of around 8 hours was performed, however in several occasions two dives were carried out in the same day (see General station list, Appendix II). After the ROV (and sometimes between two dives) the Box Corer and/or Van Veen Grab and/or Multicore was deployed. After these activities, during the night CTD-Rosette deployments and MB was conducted. Accordingly to this schema the scientific personnel worked in the day or in the night watch. A total of 215 sampling stations have been covered in MEDWAVES, using the following sampling gears: Multibeam echosounder, CTD-Rosette, LADCP, Box Corer, Van Veen Grab, Multicorer and a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV). Table 1 sumamrised the number of sampling stations conducted with each gear in each sampling zone. Additionally MB surveys have been conducted during the transits between area

Servicios ecosistémicos de la cuenca alta del río Fucha

112 páginasEl presente estudio, desarrollado por un grupo de estudiantes del Colegio Técnico José Félix Restrepo IED, busca reinterpretar los servicios ecosistémicos de las coberturas vegetales de la cuenca alta del río Fucha, entre las carreras sexta y sexta Este. Este fue el tema principal de la investigación. Contiene información de los recursos naturales que nos ofrecen y que nos benefician no solo a los seres humanos, sino a toda a la biodiversidad que se encuentra sobre la cuenca del río. Entre los servicios se encuentran, por ejemplo, el agua potable limpia y los procesos de descomposición de desechos. Estos se pueden dividir en cuatro categorías amplias como aprovisionamientos (es decir la producción de agua y de alimentos), regulación (el control del clima y de las enfermedades), polinización de cultivos de aves e insectos y, finalmente, la cultural, de la que nos beneficiamos los estudiantes, vecinos y demás personas que hacemos uso de los servicios ecosistémicos que nos ofrece la cuenca. Con esta investigación se busca, por otra parte, conocer un poco más de los grandes beneficios que podemos recibir de la naturaleza y que hacen que la vida humana sea posible

Database of spatial distribution of non indigenous species in Spanish marine waters

Research in marine Spanish waters are focused on several actions to achieve an effectively management on protected areas, with the active participation of the stakeholders and research as basic tools for decision-making. Among these actions, there is one about the knowledge and control on NIS. One of its objectives is the creation of NIS factsheets, which are going to be added to the National Marine Biodiversity Geographical System (GIS) providing complementary information about taxonomic classification, common names, taxonomic synonyms, species illustrations, identification morphological characters, habitat in the native and introduced regions, biological and ecological traits, GenBank DNA sequences, world distribution, first record and evolution in the introduced areas, likely pathways of introduction, effects in the habitats and interaction with native species, and potential management measures to apply. The database will also provide data for (1) the European online platforms, (2) the environmental assessment for the Descriptor 2 (D2-NIS) of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), as well as (3) supporting decisions made by stakeholders. It is the result of extensive collaboration among scientist, manager’s and citizen science in the Spanish North-Atlantic, South-Atlantic, Gibraltar Strait-Alboran, Levantine-Balearic and Canary Islands marine divisions, providing an updated overview of the spatial distribution of relevant extended and invasive NIS of recent and established NIS introduced by maritime transport and aquaculture pathways, as well as on cryptogenic or native species in expansion due to the climatic water warming trend

Supplement: "Localization and broadband follow-up of the gravitational-wave transient GW150914" (2016, ApJL, 826, L13)

This Supplement provides supporting material for Abbott et al. (2016a). We briefly summarize past electromagnetic (EM) follow-up efforts as well as the organization and policy of the current EM follow-up program. We compare the four probability sky maps produced for the gravitational-wave transient GW150914, and provide additional details of the EM follow-up observations that were performed in the different bands

Epidemiological trends of HIV/HCV coinfection in Spain, 2015-2019

Altres ajuts: Spanish AIDS Research Network; European Funding for Regional Development (FEDER).Objectives: We assessed the prevalence of anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibodies and active HCV infection (HCV-RNA-positive) in people living with HIV (PLWH) in Spain in 2019 and compared the results with those of four similar studies performed during 2015-2018. Methods: The study was performed in 41 centres. Sample size was estimated for an accuracy of 1%. Patients were selected by random sampling with proportional allocation. Results: The reference population comprised 41 973 PLWH, and the sample size was 1325. HCV serostatus was known in 1316 PLWH (99.3%), of whom 376 (28.6%) were HCV antibody (Ab)-positive (78.7% were prior injection drug users); 29 were HCV-RNA-positive (2.2%). Of the 29 HCV-RNA-positive PLWH, infection was chronic in 24, it was acute/recent in one, and it was of unknown duration in four. Cirrhosis was present in 71 (5.4%) PLWH overall, three (10.3%) HCV-RNA-positive patients and 68 (23.4%) of those who cleared HCV after anti-HCV therapy (p = 0.04). The prevalence of anti-HCV antibodies decreased steadily from 37.7% in 2015 to 28.6% in 2019 (p < 0.001); the prevalence of active HCV infection decreased from 22.1% in 2015 to 2.2% in 2019 (p < 0.001). Uptake of anti-HCV treatment increased from 53.9% in 2015 to 95.0% in 2019 (p < 0.001). Conclusions: In Spain, the prevalence of active HCV infection among PLWH at the end of 2019 was 2.2%, i.e. 90.0% lower than in 2015. Increased exposure to DAAs was probably the main reason for this sharp reduction. Despite the high coverage of treatment with direct-acting antiviral agents, HCV-related cirrhosis remains significant in this population