Las fanerógamas marinas como archivos paleoambientales

Las fanerógamas marinas como archivos paleoambientales Posidonia oceanica genera una gran cantidad de restos de materia orgánica que quedan soterrados, formando lo que se conoce como mata muerta, en condiciones anóxicas. Esto provoca que la descomposición de las vainas, raíces y rizomas sea muy lenta, permaneciendo casi inalterada durante milenios (Mateo et al., 1997). La prolongada permanencia de estos restos, en forma de turba, posibilita el estudio de su estratigrafía que, en definitiva, si las condiciones posibilitan una adecuada resolución espacial, refleja la cronología de la formación de la mata. Por lo tanto, si se cumplen estas características, la mata representa un registro paleo-ecológico, paleo-biogeoquímico y paleo-ambiental sin precedentes (Serrano et al., 2011). Entre algunas de estas variables cabe destacar la acumulación de (1) metales pesados, tales como Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, Cu, Pb, Cd, Zn, As y Hg (Serrano et al., 2011, 2013); (2) polen de plantas terrestres (López-Sáez et al., 2006); (3) Glomalina (López-Merino, et al., 2015), etc. La información obtenida sobre los cambios que han sufrido estas variables a lo largo del tiempo es susceptible de compararse con otro tipo de registros (fósiles, históricos, etc.) para determinar qué cambios ambientales han podido provocar esas alteraciones. Tal es el caso del estudio realizado en la bahía de Portlligat (NE de la Península Ibérica) donde se observa que el inicio de la contaminación por metales pesados en esa localidad corresponde con el asentamiento de las civilizaciones greco-romanas, tecnológicamente más avanzadas que el resto, hace 2680 años (Serrano et al., 2011). Es de resaltar que le registro de la mata de P. oceanica en esta localidad se remontaba al Holoceno Medio (4470 años AP). Se discute la importancia de estos estudios a la hora de facilitar la elaboración de modelos de predicción sobre las consecuencias que tendrían impactos similares futuros sobre estas comunidades. En concreto, podrían posibilitar la obtención de modelos de predicción para los diferentes escenarios de cambio climático elaborados por el Grupo Intergubernamental de Expertos sobre el Cambio Climático (IPCC). Por lo tanto el estudio de la mata de Posidonia oceanica supone una importante herramienta de conservación y gestión para estas comunidades. Referencias López-Merino L, Serrano O, Adamed MF, Mateo MA, Martínez Cortizas A (2015) Glomalin accumulated in seagrass sediments reveals past alterations in soil quality due to land-use change. Global and Planetary Change, 133: 87–95 López-Sáez JA, López-García P, Pozuelo R, Mateo MA, Renom P, Garrido D (2006) Non-pollen palynomorphs from organic deposits of Posidonia oceanica: a new tool for palaeoenvironmental studies in marine peat-like deposits. Palyno-Bulletin, 2 (1-4): 38-40. Mateo MA, Romero J, Pérez M, Littler MM, Littler DS (1997) Dynamics of millenary organic deposits resulting from the growth of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science, 44: 103-110. Serrano O, Martínez-Cortizas A, Mateo MA, Biester H, Bindler R (2013) Millennial scale impact on the marine biogeochemical cycle of mercury from early mining on the Iberian Peninsula. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 27: 21-30. Serrano O, Mateo MA, Dueñas-Bohórquez A, Renom P, López-Sáez JA, Martí¬nez Cortizas A (2011) The Posidonia oceanica marine sedimentary record: A Holocene archive of heavy metal pollution. Science of the Total Environment, 409: 4831-4840.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Implementation of a Maritime Disaster Management System in the Dominican Republic - Focused on Search and Rescue -

이 논문은 해양사고관리체계에 대하여 정의하고 각 국의 관리시스템을 비교 분석하였다. 이 결과를 바탕으로 도미니카공화국의 해양사고관리체계 수립에 필요한 법적, 조직적 측면에서 필요한 사항을 정리하여 적용할 수 있도록 기술하였다|This paper attempts to describe maritime management system concepts and essential elements with special focus on maritime disasters related to sear and rescue and the response system, which will serve to the Dominican Republic to develop it's own maritime response system to effectively react and properly assist to this type of maritime emergencies. From the beginning and backgrounds on maritime disasters and the consequent conventions on maritime safety to the establishment of national response systems. This paper contains details on maritime disaster, emergency management and response systems from selected countries as well as the current situation of the Dominican Republic on this matter and how the mentioned systems can serve as the first steps for developing an adequate maritime disaster management system focused on search and rescue.CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Background and objectives 1 1.1.1 Background 1 1.1.2 Objectives 5 1.2 Scope and structure 6 1.3 Research methodology 6 CHAPTER II: FUNDAMENTAL THEORY OF MARITIME DISASTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 7 2.1 General theory on maritime disaster 7 2.1.1 Definitions 7 2.1.2 Concept of maritime disaster 9 2.1.3 The nature, types and causes of maritime disasters 9 2.1.4 Ships losses and accidents 11 2.1.5 Types of maritime accidents 14 2.1.6 Examples of maritime accidents 19 2.1.7 Large scale accidents 21 2.2 Maritime disaster management system 24 2.2.1 Concept 24 2.2.2 Purpose 25 2.2.3 Essential elements 28 2.3 Milestones in maritime safety 32 CHAPTER III: THE CURRENT STATUS AND PROBLEMS OF MARITIME DISASTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 37 3.1 International treaties 37 3.2 Maritime Disaster Management System in the Dominican Republic 38 3.2.1 Legal system 38 3.2.2 Competent authorities 39 3.2.3 Current situation and problems 47 3.3 Summary and issues to be solved 49 CHAPTER IV: MARITIME DISASTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES 51 4.1 The United States of America 51 4.1.1 Homeland Security Act 51 4.1.2 Federal Emergency Management Agency 52 4.1.3 National Response Framework 53 4.1.4 Incident Command System 55 4.1.5 National Search and Rescue Plan for the United States 63 4.1.6 United States Coast Guard 67 4.2 The United Kingdom 69 4.2.1 Civil Contingencies Act 69 4.2.2 Civil Contingencies Committee 70 4.2.3 The UK emergency response and recovery 72 4.2.4 Merchant Shipping Act 1995 74 4.2.5 SAR framework for the UK of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 75 4.2.6 Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) 78 4.3 Republic of Korea 83 4.3.1 Framework act on management of disasters and safety 83 4.3.2 Rescue and aid at sea and in the river Act 86 4.3.3 Ministry of Public Safety and Security 88 4.3.4 Korea Coast Guard 91 4.4 Comparative analysis of selected countries and its implications 93 CHAPTER V: SUGGESTION OF MARITIME DISASTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 99 5.1 Legislative suggestion 99 5.2 Organizational suggestion 102 5.3 Operational suggestion 104 5.4 Multi-agency cooperation in the Dominican Republic 107 CHAPTER VI: CONCLUSION 110 6.1 Concluding marks 110 6.2 Recommendations 111 BIBLIOGRAPHY 114 ANNEX I 116 ANNEX II 126Maste

Improved synthesis of pyrrolo[1,2-c]pyrimidine and derivatives

An improved synthesis of pyrrolo[1,2-c]pyrimidine derivatives by cyclocondensation of pyrrole-2-carboxaldehydes with tosylmethyl isocyanide followed by desulfonylation of the resulting 2-tosylpyrrolo[1,2-c]pyrimidines with sodium amalgam is described.We thank the Comissió Interdepartamental de Reserca i Innovació Tecnológica (CIRIT) for financial support (project QFN91-4619 ) and the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia for a grant (J.M.M.

New tracheal stainless steel stent pilot study: twelve month follow-up in a rabbit model

Background Canine tracheal collapse is a complex airway pathology without promising treatment results. Currently nitinol stents are the best surgical option; however, some professionals are doubting if stent placement is the best option due to the associated complications. Objective Determine the technical feasibility, safety, and long-term follow-up after the implantation of a new tracheal stent designed for canine tracheal collapse. Methods Thirteen healthy, adult female New Zealander rabbits were involved in this pilot study.A new intra-tracheal device (Reference number 902711 patent registered as CasMin-Twine) was implanted in ten animals. Deployment was performed under general anesthesia, making a puncture incision via a 21 Gauge needle in the intra-tracheal space where the stent was introduced with a screwing process. The device was fixed to the tracheal wall with a non-absorbable suture. Computerized Tomography (CT) and an endoscopy to study structural abnormalities were performed after 30, 90 and 365 days after stent placement. Results Technical and clinical success was 100%. There was no significant change in behavior or respiratory disorders. CT studies showed no significant alterations. After the 30 days, 60% of the animals showed partial endothelization in the endoscopy study, and only one animal still presented partial endothelization after 12 months. Mucus accumulation was only present in 40% of cases and classified as low, without respiratory consequences. Only one animal presented a single granuloma at caudal stent tip. Conclusions This new tracheal stent (CasMin-Twine) is an effective and safe procedure with promising results, and also shows the possibility of removing the device after endothelization has been produced. New studies should be carried out to evaluate the effectiveness in patients with tracheomalacia. Clinical Significance/Impact This new product can give veterinarians a new option of treatment for this complicated pathology. Minimizing specific equipment for its deployment, CasMin-Twine will be more accessible for all professionals

A new airway spiral stent designed to maintain airway architecture with an atraumatic removal after full epithelization - Research of feasibility and viability in canine patients with tracheomalacia

Objective: Surgical management of tracheomalacia is a challenge, with current treatments still presenting numerous complications. In the field of veterinary medicine, this same pathology is present in a significant number of dogs. For this reason, we present an experimental clinical trial performed on canines with tracheobronchomalacia, using a new atraumatic removable tracheal spiral stent (SS). Both implantation procedure and clinical improvement have been analyzed in this study.Methods: In this study, four small dogs, a mean weight of 4.89 kg and body condition scores IV‐V, were included. SS was implanted by two different surgical approaches. Image and clinical follow‐up have been performed during 90 days. Symptoms were evaluated from 1 to 10 every week. Results: This study achieved 100% technical and clinical success. Median tracheal diameters were as follows: cervical 10.85 (3.3), inlet 7.75 (2.1), and carina 7.75 (1.9) mm, and length was 77.5 (26) mm. A 12 × 10 × 100‐mm SS was implanted in all cases. Goose honk cough punctuation improved from 8 to 1; also, there were important changes in exercise intolerance, a mean weight loss of 8.76%. The values of modified Karnofsky scale varied from 50 (20) before surgery to 90 (10) after 30 days of surgery. Neither granuloma tissue nor fractures of the prosthesis was observed.Conclusion: The results in dogs are promising, and a new therapeutic alternative seems to be available for veterinarian field. The similarity of this disease between dogs and newborns suggests that this SS design can also be useful for human trials

Cholesterol 24S-Hydroxylase overexpression inhibits the liver X receptor (LXR) pathway by activating small guanosine triphosphate-binding proteins (sGTPases) in neuronal cells

The neuronal-specific cholesterol 24S-hydroxylase (CYP46A1) is important for brain cholesterol elimination. Cyp46a1 null mice exhibit severe deficiencies in learning and hippocampal long-term potentiation, suggested to be caused by a decrease in isoprenoid intermediates of the mevalonate pathway. Conversely, transgenic mice overexpressing CYP46A1 show an improved cognitive function. These results raised the question of whether CYP46A1 expression can modulate the activity of proteins that are crucial for neuronal function, namely of isoprenylated small guanosine triphosphate-binding proteins (sGTPases). Our results show that CYP46A1 overexpression in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells and in primary cultures of rat cortical neurons leads to an increase in 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase activity and to an overall increase in membrane levels of RhoA, Rac1, Cdc42 and Rab8. This increase is accompanied by a specific increase in RhoA activation. Interestingly, treatment with lovastatin or a geranylgeranyltransferase-I inhibitor abolished the CYP46A1 effect. The CYP46A1-mediated increase in sGTPases membrane abundance was confirmed in vivo, in membrane fractions obtained from transgenic mice overexpressing this enzyme. Moreover, CYP46A1 overexpression leads to a decrease in the liver X receptor (LXR) transcriptional activity and in the mRNA levels of ATP-binding cassette transporter 1, sub-family A, member 1 and apolipoprotein E. This effect was abolished by inhibition of prenylation or by co-transfection of a RhoA dominant-negative mutant. Our results suggest a novel regulatory axis in neurons; under conditions of membrane cholesterol reduction by increased CYP46A1 expression, neurons increase isoprenoid synthesis and sGTPase prenylation. This leads to a reduction in LXR activity, and consequently to a decrease in the expression of LXR target genes

The fossil vertebrates from Somosaguas (Pozuelo, Madrid, Spain)

[ES] Dos yacimientos de vertebrados, situados en el Campus de Somosaguas de la Universidad Complutense (Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid), han proporcionado unos 600 restos identificables en estados de conservación muy variados, pertenecientes a unas veinte especies de tamaños muy diversos, desde mastodontes a musarañas. Su estudio permite fechar su edad en unos 14 m.a. y reconstruir un periodo árido en la cuenca de Madrid, ocupada durante el Mioceno medio por bosques y sabanas subtropicales con fuertes avenidas y sin ríos permanentes. En estos yacimientos se puede realizar una enseñanza práctica de la Paleontología de Vertebrados, para formación de estudiantes universitarios en el estudio y la gestión del Patrimonio Paleontológico.[EN] Two vertebrate fossil sites, situated in the Universidad Complutense Campus of Somosaguas, (Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain) have yielded about 600 identifiable rests in different preservation states, belonging to about twenty species of highly diverse sizes, from mastodons to shrews. Their study allows dating at about 14 m.y., and reconstructing an arid climate epoch in the Madrid basin during middle Miocene times, occupied by subtropical woodlands and savannahs with strong floods and without permanent rivers. These fossil sites allow practical teaching of Vertebrate Palaeontology, and preparing university students in the Palaeontological Heritage study and management.Hemos recibido financiación y personal respaldo del Rectorado de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, de los Decanatos de la Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y Sociología y de la Facultad de Ciencias Geológicas, y del Departamento de Paleontología de esta Facultad. El Departamento de Paleobiología del Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC) realiza su investigación en el marco del Convenio de Colaboración con la Comunidad de Madrid a través de la Dirección General de Patrimonio Histórico Artístico de la Consejería de Educación.Peer reviewe

Neuronal cholesterol metabolism increases dendritic outgrowth and synaptic markers via a concerted action of GGTase-I and Trk

We are deeply thankful to Professor David W. Russell (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center) for the kind gift of the anti-CYP46A1 antibody. This work was supported by FEDER (COMPETE Programme) and national funds from Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal, research grants iMed.ULisboa (UID/DTP/04138/2013), PTDC/SAU/NMC/110809/2009 (to E.R.), SFRH/BD/78041/2011 (to M.M.) SFRH/BPD/95855/2013 (to M.J.N), and, Swedish Research Council (J.L.R. and I.B.), Marie Curie Career Integration Grant and Novo Nordisk Fonden (J.L.R.) and Swedish Brain Power (I.B.).Cholesterol 24-hydroxylase (CYP46A1) is responsible for brain cholesterol elimination and therefore plays a crucial role in the control of brain cholesterol homeostasis. Altered CYP46A1 expression has been associated with several neurodegenerative diseases and changes in cognition. Since CYP46A1 activates small guanosine triphosphate-binding proteins (sGTPases), we hypothesized that CYP46A1 might be affecting neuronal development and function by activating tropomyosin-related kinase (Trk) receptors and promoting geranylgeranyl transferase-I (GGTase-I) prenylation activity. Our results show that CYP46A1 triggers an increase in neuronal dendritic outgrowth and dendritic protrusion density, and elicits an increase of synaptic proteins in the crude synaptosomal fraction. Strikingly, all of these effects are abolished by pharmacological inhibition of GGTase-I activity. Furthermore, CYP46A1 increases Trk phosphorylation, its interaction with GGTase-I, and the activity of GGTase-I, which is crucial for the enhanced dendritic outgrowth. Cholesterol supplementation studies indicate that cholesterol reduction by CYP46A1 is the necessary trigger for these effects. These results were confirmed in vivo, with a significant increase of p-Trk, pre- and postsynaptic proteins, Rac1, and decreased cholesterol levels, in crude synaptosomal fractions prepared from CYP46A1 transgenic mouse cortex. This work describes the molecular mechanisms by which neuronal cholesterol metabolism effectively modulates neuronal outgrowth and synaptic markers.publishersversionpublishe

Pyrrolodiazines. 4. Structure and chemistry of 3,4-dihydropyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazine

The structure of 3,4-dihydropyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazine and its N-protonated form is studied by ab initio calculations. Examples of the reactivity of this poorly studied system are presented in which it is shown that the imino moiety does not react with dienes but does undergo inter- and intramolecular 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions by reaction of azomethine ylides of this bicyclic system with suitable dipolarophiles.Ministerio de Educación y CienciaCentro de Computación de Galixia (CESGA

Next station in microarray data analysis: GEPAS

The Gene Expression Profile Analysis Suite (GEPAS) has been running for more than four years. During this time it has evolved to keep pace with the new interests and trends in the still changing world of microarray data analysis. GEPAS has been designed to provide an intuitive although powerful web-based interface that offers diverse analysis options from the early step of preprocessing (normalization of Affymetrix and two-colour microarray experiments and other preprocessing options), to the final step of the functional annotation of the experiment (using Gene Ontology, pathways, PubMed abstracts etc.), and include different possibilities for clustering, gene selection, class prediction and array-comparative genomic hybridization management. GEPAS is extensively used by researchers of many countries and its records indicate an average usage rate of 400 experiments per day. The web-based pipeline for microarray gene expression data, GEPAS, is available at