A window onto the Eocene (Cenozoic): The palaeontological record of the Sobrarbe-Pirineos UNESCO Global Geopark (Huesca, Aragon, Spain)

The Sobrarbe-Pirineos UNESCO Global Geopark, located in the Central Pyrenees, is a region of remarkable geodiversity that includes extensive Eocene fossil-bearing sites and constitutes an important archive of paleobiodiversity. The Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark hosts outcrops of Eocene formations bearing an unusual abundance and diversity of fossils from marine and continental sedimentary environments, making the Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark a perfect window for learning about tropical ecosystems of the Eocene of southern Europe. These environments were in part tectonically controlled and offer a unique opportunity to understand how faunas changed in an active area. Here, we outline the main groups of fossils from the Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark, including popular examples such as the “Crocodile of Ordesa-Vio” and the sirenian Sobrarbesiren. The Geopark has been a major tool in the geoconservation of Eocene fossils

Actualización, Investigación y Desarrollo en el Entorno Docente de Arquitectura de Computadores en la Universidad de Extremadura

En este articulo exponemos las experiencias docentes de diversos profesores que imparten docencia en una unidad temática formada por asignaturas del área de arquitectura de computadores, en la titulación de Ingeniería Informática de la Universidad de Extremadura. Resaltamos la innovación en la docencia a través de la implementación de laboratorios avanzados (dotados de hardware y software que son utilizados actualmente en el mercado tecnológico), el uso de simuladores de propósito especifico (que cubren aspectos puntuales de la docencia, algunos de los cuales se han desarrollado específicamente con este fin), la actualización de los contenidos docentes (mediante la renovación continuada de los fondos bibliográficos y mediante la relación con otras universidades), y la conexión con la investigación (resultados de la investigación desarrollada que revierten en la docencia)

Porfirio de Tiro. Contra los cristianos. Recopilación de fragmentos, traducción, introducción y notas

A pesar del estado precario y sospechoso en que nos han llegado las argumentaciones, el conjunto de las referencias cristianas de Porfirio constituye una fuente de excepcional importancia para formarse un juicio respecto a los temas de interés del polemista pagano. Este corpus es su verdadera Biblia y, dado nuestro conocimiento fragmentario y secundario de la obra, una valiosa fuente de información.180 págs

Procesos hidrogeoquímicos e isotópicos que controlan la variabilidad química en un sector del acuífero Región Carbonífera, Coahuila

El Acuífero Región Carbonífera es uno de los 28 sistemas hidrogeológicos existentes en el estado de Coahuila, y también de los que más presiones sufre debido a la actividad minera y la sobreexplotación. Este estudio se enmarca en la porción oeste de dicho acuífero, abarcando el Ejido Morelos y la Colonia El Nacimiento, ambos en el municipio Melchor Múzquiz. En dicha área se tomaron muestras en 14 sitios (4 pozos, 6 norias, 2 manantiales y 2 secciones del río Sabinas), con el objetivo de caracterizar desde el punto de vista hidrogeoquímico e isotópico estos cuerpos hídricos y así obtener un modelo conceptual de dicho sector. Los resultados obtenidos muestran la variabilidad química de las aguas muestreadas, clasificándose como aguas de tipo bicarbonatada-cálcica, bicarbonatada-sódica, sulfatada-cálcica y clorurada-sódica, lo cual sugiere la ocurrencia de variados procesos que afectan la calidad del recurso, entre ellos la salinidad. Desde el punto de vista isotópico se propone un origen meteórico para la mayoría de los cuerpos hídricos en estudio, cuya zona de recarga proviene de la sierra de Santa Rosa. Sin embargo, procesos como la evaporación superficial, la disolución de sales, y el intercambio iónico generan variabilidad química y fraccionamiento isotópico, lo que condiciona firmas isotópicas más pesadas, y aguas más enriquecidas y salinas. Estos elementos se representan en un modelo geohidrológico e isotópico conceptual, que integra ambas interpretaciones y muestra la complejidad hidrogeológica de la región en términos de calidad del recurso

Assessment and ranking of the severity of disturbances in the Mexican Interconnected System

This paper adopts a methodology to assess and rank the severity of the most frequent disturbances, 3 types in particular, that occur in the Mexican Interconnected System (MIS) when wind power plants (WPPs) are integrated. This is done by combining three stability indices from which an overall performance measure can be derived. In this way, it is possible to assess the severity of the disturbances such as generation tripping, line tripping and disconnection of loads. The indices under consideration include measures such as maximum amplitude, speed variation, and the Lyapunov exponent. For ranking the severity, a general index value is used. To confirm the effectiveness and performance of the proposed methodology, this paper investigates the 190-bus and 46-generator MIS equipped with an 8% of wind generation to quantitatively evaluate the severity of disturbances, resulting in 66% of unstable disturbances which are associated with the disconnection of loads

Frequency and clinical impact of CDKN2A/ARF/CDKN2B gene deletions as assessed by in-depth genetic analyses in adult T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia

© The Author(s).Recurrent deletions of the CDKN2A/ARF/CDKN2B genes encoded at chromosome 9p21 have been described in both pediatric and adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), but their prognostic value remains controversial, with limited data on adult T-ALL. Here, we investigated the presence of homozygous and heterozygous deletions of the CDKN2A/ARF and CDKN2B genes in 64 adult T-ALL patients enrolled in two consecutive trials from the Spanish PETHEMA group. Alterations in CDKN2A/ARF/CDKN2B were detected in 35/64 patients (55%). Most of them consisted of 9p21 losses involving homozygous deletions of the CDKNA/ARF gene (26/64), as confirmed by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays and interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (iFISH). Deletions involving the CDKN2A/ARF/CDKN2B locus correlated with a higher frequency of cortical T cell phenotype and a better clearance of minimal residual disease (MRD) after induction therapy. Moreover, the combination of an altered copy-number-value (CNV) involving the CDKN2A/ARF/CDKN2B gene locus and undetectable MRD (≤ 0.01%) values allowed the identification of a subset of T-ALL with better overall survival in the absence of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.This project was supported by the Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer, AECC (project ref.: GC16173697BIGA), by CERCA Program/Generalitat de Catalunya, the Catalan Government: 2014-SGR225 (GRE), Obra Social “La Caixa” and by Celgene Spain. E. Genescà is the recipient of agrant from the Spanish Health Ministry (ISCIII, CA12/00468) and an unrestricted grant from Gilead.A. Gonzalez-Perez is supported by a Ramon y Cajal fellowship (RYC-2013-14554) of the Educational Ministry (Madrid, Spain). This work was also partially supported by FEDER funds from the ISCIII (PT13/0010/0026, CIBERONC (CB16/12/00284 and CB16/12/00400), Madrid, Spain)

Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in preventable mortality in urban areas of 33 Spanish cities, 1996–2007 (MEDEA project)

Background: Preventable mortality is a good indicator of possible problems to be investigated in the primary prevention chain, making it also a useful tool with which to evaluate health policies particularly public health policies. This study describes inequalities in preventable avoidable mortality in relation to socioeconomic status in small urban areas of thirty three Spanish cities, and analyses their evolution over the course of the periods 1996–2001 and 2002–2007. Methods: We analysed census tracts and all deaths occurring in the population residing in these cities from 1996 to 2007 were taken into account. The causes included in the study were lung cancer, cirrhosis, AIDS/HIV, motor vehicle traffic accidents injuries, suicide and homicide. The census tracts were classified into three groups, according their socioeconomic level. To analyse inequalities in mortality risks between the highest and lowest socioeconomic levels and over different periods, for each city and separating by sex, Poisson regression were used. Results: Preventable avoidable mortality made a significant contribution to general mortality (around 7.5%, higher among men), having decreased over time in men (12.7 in 1996–2001 and 10.9 in 2002–2007), though not so clearly among women (3.3% in 1996–2001 and 2.9% in 2002–2007). It has been observed in men that the risks of death are higher in areas of greater deprivation, and that these excesses have not modified over time. The result in women is different and differences in mortality risks by socioeconomic level could not be established in many cities. Conclusions: Preventable mortality decreased between the 1996–2001 and 2002–2007 periods, more markedly in men than in women. There were socioeconomic inequalities in mortality in most cities analysed, associating a higher risk of death with higher levels of deprivation. Inequalities have remained over the two periods analysed. This study makes it possible to identify those areas where excess preventable mortality was associated with more deprived zones. It is in these deprived zones where actions to reduce and monitor health inequalities should be put into place. Primary healthcare may play an important role in this process.This work was partly supported by the FIS-FEDER projects PI080330, PI081713, PI081978, PI0463/2010, PI081017, PI081785, PI081058, PI080142, and the FUNDACIÓN CAJAMURCIA project FFIS/CM10/27

Nephrin mutations cause childhood- and adult-onset focal segmental glomerulosclerosis

Mutations in the NPHS1 gene cause congenital nephrotic syndrome of the Finnish type presenting before the first 3 months of life. Recently, NPHS1 mutations have also been identified in childhood-onset steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome and milder courses of disease, but their role in adults with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis remains unknown. Here we developed an in silico scoring matrix to evaluate the pathogenicity of amino-acid substitutions using the biophysical and biochemical difference between wild-type and mutant amino acid, the evolutionary conservation of the amino-acid residue in orthologs, and defined domains, with the addition of contextual information. Mutation analysis was performed in 97 patients from 89 unrelated families, of which 52 presented with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome after 18 years of age. Compound heterozygous or homozygous NPHS1 mutations were identified in five familial and seven sporadic cases, including one patient 27 years old at onset of the disease. Substitutions were classified as ‘severe’ or ‘mild’ using this in silico approach. Our results suggest an earlier onset of the disease in patients with two ‘severe’ mutations compared to patients with at least one ‘mild’ mutation. The finding of mutations in a patient with adult-onset focal segmental glomerulosclerosis indicates that NPHS1 analysis could be considered in patients with later onset of the disease

The role of retinal fluid location in atrophy and fibrosis evolution of patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration long-term treated in real world

Purpose: To assess the effect of clinical factors on the development and progression of atrophy and fibrosis in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) receiving long-term treatment in the real world. Methods: An ambispective 36-month multicentre study, involving 359 nAMD patients from 17 Spanish hospitals treated according to the Spanish Vitreoretinal Society guidelines, was designed. The influence of demographic and clinical factors, including the presence and location of retinal fluid, on best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and progression to atrophy and/or fibrosis were analysed. Results: After 36 months of follow-up and an average of 13.8 anti-VEGF intravitreal injections, the average BCVA gain was +1.5 letters, and atrophy and/or fibrosis were present in 54.8% of nAMD patients (OR = 8.54, 95% CI = 5.85-12.47, compared to baseline). Atrophy was associated with basal intraretinal fluid (IRF) (OR = 1.87, 95% CI = 1.09-3.20), whereas basal subretinal fluid (SRF) was associated with a lower rate of atrophy (OR = 0.40, 95% CI = 0.23-0.71) and its progression (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.26-0.75), leading to a slow progression rate (OR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.14-0.83). Fibrosis development and progression were related to IRF at any visit (p < 0.001). In contrast, 36-month SRF was related to a lower rate of fibrosis (OR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.29-0.81) and its progression (OR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.31-0.81). Conclusion: Atrophy and/or fibrosis were present in 1 of 2 nAMD patients treated for 3 years. Both, especially fibrosis, lead to vision loss. Subretinal fluid (SRF) was associated with good visual outcomes and lower rates of atrophy and fibrosis, whereas IRF yields worse visual results and a higher risk of atrophy and especially fibrosis in routine clinical practice