Activated Carbon Fiber Monoliths as Supercapacitor Electrodes

Activated carbon fibers (ACF) are interesting candidates for electrodes in electrochemical energy storage devices; however, one major drawback for practical application is their low density. In the present work, monoliths were synthesized from two different ACFs, reaching 3 times higher densities than the original ACFs’ apparent densities. The porosity of the monoliths was only slightly decreased with respect to the pristine ACFs, the employed PVDC binder developing additional porosity upon carbonization. The ACF monoliths are essentially microporous and reach BET surface areas of up to 1838 m2 g−1. SEM analysis reveals that the ACFs are well embedded into the monolith structure and that their length was significantly reduced due to the monolith preparation process. The carbonized monoliths were studied as supercapacitor electrodes in two- and three-electrode cells having 2 M H2SO4 as electrolyte. Maximum capacitances of around 200 F g−1 were reached. The results confirm that the capacitance of the bisulfate anions essentially originates from the double layer, while hydronium cations contribute with a mixture of both, double layer capacitance and pseudocapacitance.Financial support through the projects of reference MAT2014-57687-R, GV/FEDER (PROMETEOII/2014/010), and University of Alicante (VIGROB-136) is gratefully acknowledged

An extended chain and trinuclear complexes based on Pt(II)-M (M = Tl(I), Pb(II)) bonds: Contrasting photophysical behavior

The syntheses and structural characterizations of a Pt–Tl chain [{Pt(bzq)(C6F5)2}Tl(Me2CO)]n 1 and two trinuclear Pt2M clusters (NBu4)[{Pt(bzq)(C6F5)2}2Tl] 2 and [{Pt(bzq)(C6F5)2}2Pb] 3 (bzq = 7,8-benzoquinolinyl), stabilized by donor–acceptor Pt → M bonds, are reported. The one-dimensional heterometallic chain 1 is formed by alternate “Pt(bzq)(C6F5)2” and “Tl(Me2CO)” fragments, with Pt–Tl bond separations in the range of 2.961(1)–3.067(1) Å. The isoelectronic trinuclear complexes 2 (which crystallizes in three forms, namely, 2a, 2b, and 2c) and 3 present a sandwich structure in which the Tl(I) or Pb(II) is located between two “Pt(bzq)(C6F5)2” subunits. NMR studies suggest equilibria in solution implying cleavage and reformation of Pt–M bonds. The lowest-lying absorption band in the UV–vis spectra in CH2Cl2 and tetrahydrofuran (THF) of 1, associated with 1MLCT/1L′LCT 1[5dπ(Pt) → π*(bzq)]/1[(C6F5) → bzq], displays a blue shift in relation to the precursor, suggesting the cleavage of the chain maintaining bimetallic Pt–Tl fragments in solution, also supported by NMR spectroscopy. In 2 and 3, it shows a blue shift in THF and a red shift in CH2Cl2, supporting a more extensive cleavage of the Pt–M bonds in THF solutions than in CH2Cl2, where the trinuclear entities are predominant. The Pt–Tl chain 1 displays in solid state a bright orange-red emission ascribed to 3MM′CT (M′ = Tl). It exhibits remarkable and fast reversible vapochromic and vapoluminescent response to donor vapors (THF and Et2O), related to the coordination/decoordination of the guest molecule to the Tl(I) ion, and mechanochromic behavior, associated with the shortening of the intermetallic Pt–Tl separations in the chain induced by grinding. In frozen solutions (THF, acetone, and CH2Cl2) 1 shows interesting luminescence thermochromism with emissions strongly dependent on the solvent, concentration, and excitation wavelengths. The Pt2Tl complex 2 shows an emission close to 1, ascribed to charge transfer from the platinum fragment to the thallium [3(L+L′)MM′CT]. 2 also shows vapoluminescent behavior in the presence of vapors of Me2CO, THF, and Et2O, although smaller and slower than those of 1. The trinuclear neutral complex Pt2Pb 3 displays a blue-shift emission band, tentatively assigned to admixture of 3MM′CT 3[Pt(d) → Pb(sp)] with some metal-mediated intraligand (3ππ/3ILCT) contribution. In contrast to 1 and 2, 3 does not show vapoluminescent behavior.This work was supported by the Spanish MICINN (DGPTC/FEDER) (Project No. CTQ2008-06669-C02-01-02/BQU) and MINECO/FEDER (Projects Nos. CTQ2012-35251 and CTQ2013-45518-P) and the Gobierno de Aragón (Grupo Consolidado E21: Química Inorgánica y de los Compuestos Organometálicos).Peer Reviewe

Quercus suber dieback alters soil respiration and nutrient availability in Mediterranean forests

12 páginas.-- 5 figuras.-- 1 tablas.-- 106 referencias.-- Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12618.-- Data available from the Dryad Digital Repository, http://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6nd4k (Avila et al. 2016)An increase in tree mortality rates has been recently detected in forests world-wide. However, few works have focused on the potential consequences of forest dieback for ecosystem functioning. Here we assessed the effect of Quercus suber dieback on carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles in two types of Mediterranean forests (woodlands and closed forests) affected by the aggressive pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi. We used a spatially explicit neighbourhood approach to analyse the direct effects of Q. suber dieback on soil variables, comparing the impact of Q. suber trees with different health status, as well as its potential long-term indirect effects, comparing the impact of non-declining coexistent species. Quercus suber dieback translated into lower soil respiration rates and phosphorus availability, whereas its effects on nitrogen varied depending on forest type. Coexistent species differed strongly from Q. suber in their effects on nutrient availability, but not on soil respiration rates. Our models showed low interannual but high intra-annual variation in the ecosystem impacts of tree dieback. Synthesis. Our results support that tree dieback might have important short- and long-term impacts on ecosystem processes in Mediterranean forests. With this work, we provide valuable insights to fill the existent gap in knowledge on the ecosystem-level impacts of forest dieback in general and P. cinnamomi-driven mortality in particular. Because the activity and range of this pathogen is predicted to increase due to climate warming, these impacts could also increase in the near future altering ecosystem functioning world-wideThis research was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICINN) projects CGL2008-04503-C03-03, CGL2010-21381 and CGL2011-26877. J.M.A. was supported by a FPU-MEC grant (AP2010-0229) and B.I. by a FPI-MICINN grant (BES-2009-017111).Peer reviewe

E-cadherin expression is associated with somatostatin analogue response in acromegaly

Acromegaly is a rare disease resulting from hypersecretion of growth hormone (GH) and insulin‐like growth factor 1 (IGF1) typically caused by pituitary adenomas, which is associated with increased mortality and morbidity. Somatostatin analogues (SSAs) represent the primary medical therapy for acromegaly and are currently used as first‐line treatment or as second‐line therapy after unsuccessful pituitary surgery. However, a considerable proportion of patients do not adequately respond to SSAs treatment, and therefore, there is an urgent need to identify biomarkers predictors of response to SSAs. The aim of this study was to examine E‐cadherin expression by immunohistochemistry in fifty‐five GH‐producing pituitary tumours and determine the potential association with response to SSAs as well as other clinical and histopathological features. Acromegaly patients with tumours expressing low E‐cadherin levels exhibit a worse response to SSAs. E‐cadherin levels are associated with GH‐producing tumour histological subtypes. Our results indicate that the immunohistochemical detection of E‐cadherin might be useful in categorizing acromegaly patients based on the response to SSAs.ISCIII‐Subdirección General de Evaluación y Fomento de la Investigación PI13/02043 PI16/00175FEDER PI13/02043 PI16/00175Junta de Andalucía A‐0023‐2015 A‐0003‐2016 CTS‐1406 BIO‐0139Andalusian Ministry of Health C‐0015‐2014CIBERobn PI13/ 02043 PI16/0017

Plant invasions are context-dependent: Multiscale effects of climate, human activity and habitat

ABSTRACT Aim Understanding the conditions that promote biological invasions is a critical step to developing successful management strategies. However, the level of invasion is affected by complex interactions among environmental factors that might change across habitats and regions making broad generalizations uninformative for management. We aimed to quantify the context-dependent association of climate and human activity at landscape scale (i.e. disturbance and propagule pressure) with the level of plant invasion at local scale across different stages of invasion, habitat types and bioclimatic regions. Location Mainland Spain. Methods Based on an extensive database of vegetation plots (~50,000), we used hierarchical Bayesian models to test how climate and human activity at a landscape scale (i.e. land-cover variables) are associated with establishment (i.e. presence) and dominance (i.e. relative species richness and abundance in invaded plots) of non-native plants across nine habitat types and three bioclimatic regions. Results The association of climate with establishment and dominance of nonnative plants varied depending on habitat type but not bioclimatic region. These associations also varied depending on the stage of invasion under consideration. Establishment of non-native species was more likely close to the coast, while their dominance increased in wet and warm continental areas. Human activity variables were associated with establishment and dominance similarly across bioclimatic regions. Non-native species establishment and abundance peaked in human-altered landscapes. Different habitats showed different susceptibilities to establishment versus dominance by non-native species (e.g. woodlands had medium levels of establishment, but very low dominance). Main conclusions This study highlights how complex interactions among climate, human activity and habitats can determine patterns of invasions across broad landscapes. Successful management of plant invasions will depend on understanding these context-dependent effects across habitats at the different stages of the invasion process

Effects of Quercus suber Decline on Woody Plant Regeneration: Potential Implications for Successional Dynamics in Mediterranean Forests

15 páginas.-- 2 figuras.-- 1 tabla.-- 82 referencias.--The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10021-016-0044-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized usersIn the last two decades, widespread tree decline and mortality have been documented in forests worldwide. These mortality events usually show certain level of host-specificity, translating into rapid changes in the relative abundance of the adult community. Despite these short-term changes, it is poorly understood whether the decline and mortality of certain tree species are likely to result in long-term vegetation shifts. Trajectories of forest recovery and the probability of occurrence of permanent vegetation shifts are to a large extent determined by post-mortality regeneration dynamics. Using a spatially explicit neighborhood approach, we evaluated the spatial patterns of natural regeneration of the woody plant community in mixed Mediterranean forests affected by the decline of their dominant tree species, Quercus suber. We predicted the abundance, survival, and richness of the seedling and sapling bank as a function of the distribution and health status of the tree and shrub community. Results indicated that Q. suber decline had detectable effects on seedlings and saplings of coexistent woody species from very different functional groups (trees, shrubs, and lianas). The sign and magnitude of these effects varied substantially among coexistent species, which could imply shifts in the species ranking of seedling and sapling abundance, affecting successional trajectories and potentially leading to vegetation shifts. Because most of these changes pointed towards a loss of dominance of Q. suber, management strategies are urgently needed in order to attenuate adult mortality or promote its regeneration, counteracting the negative effects of global change drivers (exotic pathogens, climate change) on these valuable forests.This research was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICIIN) projects INTERBOS (CGL2008-04503-C03-03), DIVERBOS (CGL2011-30285-C02-01), RETROBOS (CGL2011-26877), and RESTECO (CGL2014-52858-R), and the Junta de Andalucía project ANASINQUE (PGC2010-RNM-5782). BI was supported by a Formación de Personal Investigador (FPI)-MICINN Grant, J.M.A. by a Formación de Personal Universitario (FPU)-MEC Grant, and I.M.P.R. by a JAEdoc-Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) contract.Peer reviewe

Scattering images from autocorrelation functions of P-wave seismic velocity images : the case of Tenerife Island (Canary Islands, Spain)

We thank Edoardo Del Pezzo for the valuable idea of this paper and suggestions regarding the methodology. J. Prudencio is partially supported by NSF1521855 Hazard SEES project. This paper has been partially supported by the Spanish project KNOWAVES (TEC2015-68752-R (MINECO/FEDER)), the European project MED-SUV funded by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program for research, technological development and demonstration under Grant Agreement No 308665, and by the Regional project ‘Grupo de Investigación en Geofísica y Sismología de la Junta de Andalucía, RNM104’.Peer reviewedPostprin

Epigenetic and post-transcriptional regulation of somatostatin receptor subtype 5 (SST5 ) in pituitary and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors.

Somatostatin receptor subtype 5 (SST5 ) is an emerging biomarker and actionable target in pituitary (PitNETs) and pancreatic (PanNETs) neuroendocrine tumors. Transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of SSTR5 gene expression and mRNA biogenesis is poorly understood. Recently, an overlapping natural antisense transcript, SSTR5-AS1, potentially regulating SSTR5 expression, was identified. We aimed to elucidate whether epigenetic processes contribute to the regulation of SSTR5 expression in PitNETs (somatotropinomas) and PanNETs. We analyzed the SSTR5/SSTR5-AS1 human locus in silico to identify CpG islands. SSTR5 and SSTR5-AS1 expression was assessed by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) in 27 somatotropinomas, 11 normal pituitaries (NPs), and 15 PanNETs/paired adjacent (control) samples. We evaluated methylation grade in four CpG islands in the SSTR5/SSTR5-AS1 genes. Results revealed that SSTR5 and SSTR5-AS1 were directly correlated in NP, somatotropinoma and PanNET samples. Interestingly, selected CpG islands were differentially methylated in somatotropinomas compared with NPs. In PanNETs cell lines, SSTR5-AS1 silencing downregulated SSTR5 expression, altered aggressiveness features, and influenced pasireotide response. These results provide evidence that SSTR5 expression in PitNETs and PanNETs can be epigenetically regulated by the SSTR5-AS1 antisense transcript and, indirectly, by DNA methylation, which may thereby impact tumor behavior and treatment response

Physical activity and leisure habits and relation with Ruffier index in adolescents

El objetivo del estudio fue medir y correlacionar la práctica de actividad física y con el Índice de Ruffier (IR) en adolescentes. A un total de 884 alumnos (edad=16,4±0,8 años) se les midió la actividad física con la Versión modificada del Assessment of Physical Activity Level Questionnaire (APALQ) y se evaluó la capacidad de adaptación al esfuerzo mediante el Test Ruffier. La media del Índice de Ruffier fue 11,1±4,6 y el Índice de actividad física (IAF) 13,8±4,4. Las relaciones entre IAF y el IR, y entre horas de ocio sedentario e IR resultaron ser significativas aunque débiles (r=-0,31; p=0,000). En el IR los chicos presentaron valores superiores (t= -8,78; p= 0,000) a las chicas. También destinan más tiempo a la práctica de AF y estas diferencias fueron significativas en AF reglada y no reglada y en participación en competición (p=0,000), mientras que las chicas destinan más tiempo a actividades sedentarias como leer y estudiar (p=0,000). Es necesario promover la práctica de actividades físico-deportivas, especialmente entre las chicasThe aim of the study was to assess and correlate physical activity practice and fitness level in adolescents. A total of 884 students (age=16,4±0,8 years) answered the modified version of the “Assessment of Physical Activity Level Questionnaire (APALQ)” and aerobic capacity was assessed through the Ruffier Test. The mean Ruffier Index (IR) was 11,1±4,6 and the mean Physical Activity Index (IAF) was 13,8±4,4. The relationship between IAF and IR, and between sedentary activities in leisure time and IR, was significant (r=-0,31; p=0,000). although weak. Boys showed higher physical fitness values (t= -8,78; p= 0,000) and spent more time practicing physical activity. These differences were significant for both regulated and not regulated physical activity and for participation in competition (p=0.000). Girls spent more time in sedentary activities like reading and studying (p=0.000). It is necessary to promote physical activity and sport practice, especially among girls