Valorization of Cistus ladanifer and Erica arborea shrubs for fuel: Wood and bark thermal characterization

As a form of upgraded biomass characterized by its high energy density, low production costs, and low process energy requirements, wood pellets are an environmentally friendly fuel allowing for carbon neutral heating with high energy efficiency. In this work, the suitability of a valorization of the woods from the two most representative shrub species from the Iberian Peninsula (namely Cistus ladanifer and Erica arborea) for heating has been assessed. Whereas Erica arborea met the requirements of ISO 17225-2:2014 for ENplus-B class (the calorific content for both wood and bark was high and not significantly different, and the ash content was permissible for specimens with branch diameter =2, 8 cm), Cistus ladanifer was in the limit of the normative and only met the requirements in terms of acceptable ash percentage (1, 9%) and heating value (19 kJ·g-1) for old specimens with branch diameters > 3, 4 cm. Consequently, while the harvest of E. arborea for its use as fuel does not need to be selective, that of C. ladanifer should be limited to the most robust specimens and foliage should be avoided

Performance of an outdoor membrane photobioreactor for resource recovery from anaerobically treated sewage

[EN] The objective of this work was to evaluate the performance of a pilot scale membrane photobioreactor (MPBR) for treating the effluent of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) system. In particular, new experimental data on microalgae productivity, nutrient recovery, CO2 biofixation and energy recovery potential was obtained under different operating conditions, which would facilitate moving towards cost-effective microalgae cultivation on wastewater. To this aim, a 2.2-m(3) MPBR equipped with two commercial-scale hollow-fibre ultrafiltration membrane modules was operated treating the nutrient-loaded effluent from an AnMBR for sewage treatment. The influence of several design, environmental and operating parameters on MPBR performance was studied. Among the conditions evaluated, variations in solar irradiance significantly affected the nutrient recovery rate (NRR). Operating at temperatures above 25 degrees C and high biomass concentrations, which increased light shading effect, negatively affected biomass production and NRR. Maximum biomass productivity of 66 mg VSS L-1 d(-1) (areal productivity of 15.78 g VSS m(-2) d(-1)) and NRR of 7.68 mg N L-1 d(-1) and 1.17 mg P L-1 d(-1) were achieved when operating at 4.5 days of biomass retention time. These results would outcome maximum theoretical energy recoveries and CO2 biofixations of about 0.43 kWh and 0.51 kg CO2 per m(3) of treated water, respectively. Moreover, the excellent quality permeate that was produced (i.e. negligible levels of pathogens and suspended solids) represents a reclaimed water source. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.This research was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO, Projects CTM2011-28595-C02-01/02, CTM2014-54980-C2-1-R and CTM2014-54980-C2-2-R) jointly with the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Generalitat Valenciana (GVA-ACOMP2013/203), which are gratefully acknowledged. The authors also like to acknowledge the support received from Generalitat Valenciana via one VALi+d postdoctoral grant (APOSTD/2014/049).Viruela Navarro, A.; Robles Martínez, Á.; Durán Pinzón, F.; Ruano García, MV.; Barat, R.; Ferrer, J.; Seco Torrecillas, A. (2018). Performance of an outdoor membrane photobioreactor for resource recovery from anaerobically treated sewage. Journal of Cleaner Production. 178:665-674. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.223S66567417

Mediterranean shrublands as carbon sinks for climate change mitigation: new root-to-shoot ratios

Shrublands play an important role in the reduction of atmospheric CO2 and contribute to the mitigation of the effects of climate change, due to their ability to act as carbon sinks and the large expanses of land involved. Two of the most representative shrub species in the Iberian Peninsula, Cistus ladanifer L. and Erica arborea L., were studied in terms of biomass distribution and carbon and nitrogen contents in the different fractions. With a view to fast and cost-effective estimation of radical biomass, a new procedure for easy root-to-shoot calculation based on vibrational data was proposed, resulting in an excellent agreement with the values obtained from conventional direct belowground and aerial biomass measurements: 0.23 for C. ladanifer and 0.54 for E. arborea. Carbon sequestration, estimated at 45 and 73 t CO2 eq·ha-1 for C. ladanifer and E. arborea, respectively, was subsequently determined. Since these values are substantially higher than those of other shrubs, these two key species can be deemed particularly promising for ecological restoration and carbon offsetting

NO2 VCD Stratospheric trends Hemispheric and latitudinal dependence

Presentación realizada para el 7th International DOAS Workshop celebrado en Bruselas los días 6-8 de julio de 2015Twenty years of stratospheric NO2 VCD data from ground-based zenith DOAS instruments have been used for trend analysis. Spectrometers either NDACC qualified or under evaluation cover Subtropical latitudes in Northern Hemisphere (Izaña, 28ºN), and Southern Antarctic (Marambio, 64ºS) and SubAntarctic (Ushuaia, 55ºS) regions. The multiple linear regression method includes annual, semiannual, quarterly, solar activity cycle, stratospheric aerosols, QBO and NAO proxies. The instruments settings follow the NDACC recommendations for NO2 measurements and the same AMF code. Results show a mean am/pm positive trend of + 7.9% at the 99% confidence level in the Northern Hemisphere station whereas the trends are negative in the Southern Hemisphere ones (-9.8% Ushuaia, -14.9% Marambio). From comparison with FTIR data, it is estimated that the changes are restricted to the lower stratosphere (15-30km) suggesting a dynamic origin of the trend. MIPAS NOy on a global scale shows a similar feature with a redistribution of the nitrogen family within the lower stratosphere

ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile: Ophioviridae

[EN] The Ophioviridae is a family of filamentous plant viruses, with single-stranded negative, and possibly ambisense, RNA genomes of 11.3-12.5 kb divided into 3-4 segments, each encapsidated separately. Virions are naked filamentous nucleocapsids, forming kinked circles of at least two different contour lengths. The sole genus, Ophiovirus, includes seven species. Four ophioviruses are soil-transmitted and their natural hosts include trees, shrubs, vegetables and bulbous or corm-forming ornamentals, both monocots and dicots. This is a summary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) Report on the taxonomy of the Ophioviridae, which is available at http://www.ictv.global/report/ophioviridae.Production of this summary, the online chapter and associated resources was funded by a grant from the Wellcome Trust (WT108418AIA).Garcia, M.; Dal Bo, E.; Da Graca, JV.; Gago Zachert, SP.; Hammond, J.; Moreno, P.; Natsuaki, T.... (2017). ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile: Ophioviridae. Journal of General Virology. 98(6):1161-1162. doi:10.1099/jgv.0.000836S1161116298

Phase II study of high-sensitivity genotyping of KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and PIK3CA to ultra-select metastatic colorectal cancer patients for panitumumab plus FOLFIRI: the ULTRA trial

Background: Several studies show the importance of accurately quantifying not only KRAS and other low-abundant mutations because benefits of anti-EGFR therapies may depend on certain sensitivity thresholds. We assessed whether ultra-selection of patients using a high-sensitive digital PCR (dPCR) to determine KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and PIK3CA status can improve clinical outcomes of panitumumab plus FOLFIRI. Patients and methods: This was a single-arm phase II trial that analysed 38 KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and PIK3CA hotspots in tumour tissues of irinotecan-resistant metastatic colorectal cancer patients who received panitumumab plus FOLFIRI until disease progression or early withdrawal. Mutation profiles were identified by nanofluidic dPCR and correlated with clinical outcomes (ORR, overall response rate; PFS, progression-free survival; OS, overall survival) using cut-offs from 0% to 5%. A quantitative PCR (qPCR) analysis was also performed. Results: Seventy-two evaluable patients were enrolled. RAS (KRAS/NRAS) mutations were detected in 23 (32%) patients and RAS/BRAF mutations in 25 (35%) by dPCR, while they were detected in 7 (10%) and 11 (15%) patients, respectively, by qPCR. PIK3CA mutations were not considered in the analyses as they were only detected in 2 (3%) patients by dPCR and in 1 (1%) patient by qPCR. The use of different dPCR cut-offs for RAS (KRAS/NRAS) and RAS/BRAF analyses translated into differential clinical outcomes. The highest ORR, PFS and OS in wild-type patients with their lowest values in patients with mutations were achieved with a 5% cut-off. We observed similar outcomes in RAS/BRAF wild-type and mutant patients defined by qPCR. Conclusions: High-sensitive dPCR accurately identified patients with KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and PIK3CA mutations. The optimal RAS/BRAF mutational cut-off for outcome prediction is 5%, which explains that the predictive performance of qPCR was not improved by dPCR. The biological and clinical implications of low-frequent mutated alleles warrant further investigations

Aplicación de la oxifertirrigación para optimizar los recursos hídricos en cítricos, basado en la aplicación de peróxido de hidrógeno en el agua de riego

En este trabajo se estudia la respuesta fisiológica y agronómica de la aplicación de la oxifertirrigación química, basada en la aplicación de peróxido de hidrógeno como fuente de oxígeno a nivel radicular en cítricos. El ensayo tuvo lugar durante dos campañas (2018-2019 y 2019-2020) en árboles adultos de mandarino híbrido ‘Ortanique’ ubicados en una parcela experimental del IMIDA en Torre Pacheco (Murcia). Se establecieron dos tratamientos, un tratamiento ‘Control’ (0 ppm de H2O2) y otro identificado como ‘OXI’ (50-100 ppm de H2O2 durante todo el ciclo de cultivo). Ambos tratamientos recibieron la misma cantidad de agua y de fertilizante. El H2O2 se aplicó de forma continua con una bomba dosificadora a la red de riego. Los resultados más destacados mostraron que el estado hídrico de los árboles del tratamiento ‘OXI’ fue muy similar al control. Respecto a los parámetros de intercambio gaseoso, la aplicación de H2O2 estimuló una mayor apertura estomática en el mes de septiembre de ambas campañas. Sin embargo, las ligeras alteraciones fisiológicas no han supuesto cambios sustanciales en la biometría de la planta. En la segunda campaña, la aplicación de H2O2 en el riego favoreció la acumulación de N, K y Fe en hoja, lo que permitiría reducir la dosis de fertilizante. La respuesta productiva y la eficiencia en el uso del agua no presentaron una clara mejora a la aplicación de H2O2 en el agua de riego. Los mayores niveles de N en el tratamiento ‘OXI’ afectaron negativamente a la calidad del fruto, reduciendo el porcentaje de zumo y aumentando el porcentaje de corteza. En cambio, la aplicación de H2O2 disminuyó el índice de madurez de la fruta, lo que resulta interesante de cara a retrasar la recolección en variedades tardías

Riego de un cultivo de citricos con agua marina desalinizada. resultados preliminares en suelo y planta

La escasez de agua y la creciente presión sobre los recursos hídricos en las regiones semiáridas ha extendido la utilización para el riego de recursos hídricos no convencionales, como el agua marina desalinizada (AMD). Debido a su composición en Cl-, Na+ y B3+, el riego con AMD podría causar problemas agronómicos y afectar al suelo y a los cultivos a medio y largo plazo. En este estudio, se regó una parcela de mandarinos durante 20 meses con (i) agua proporcionada por la Comunidad de Regantes del Campo de Cartagena (CR), (ii) agua marina desalinizada (AMD) y (iii) mezcla de agua 50% CR y 50% AMD (AM). Se evaluó el efecto sobre la dinámica y acumulación de los iones tóxicos Cl-, Na+ y B3+ en el suelo y en la planta. La [B3+] del agua AMD fue superior a la de CR, acumulándose en el suelo, con una concentración un 25% superior a la encontrada con CR al final del ensayo. La [B3+] en la capa superficial del suelo se correlacionó con la [B3+] en el agua y con la [B3+] en la hoja. Aunque tras 20 meses los árboles regados con AMD tuvieron una [B3+] foliar un 25% superior a la de árboles regados con CR, no presentaron síntomas de toxicidad. Las [Cl-] y [Na+] del agua fueron similares en los tres tipos de agua, superando los umbrales a partir de los cuales pueden producir toxicidad en cítricos. Las concentraciones de Cl- y Na+ en hoja permanecieron por debajo del umbral de toxicidad establecido para cítricos. Los resultados obtenidos son preliminares ya que este estudio debería extenderse durante un periodo más largo para obtener datos más concluyentes acerca de los efectos a largo plazo de la utilización de AMD tanto en el suelo como en la planta

Search for chargino-neutralino production with mass splittings near the electroweak scale in three-lepton final states in √s=13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for supersymmetry through the pair production of electroweakinos with mass splittings near the electroweak scale and decaying via on-shell W and Z bosons is presented for a three-lepton final state. The analyzed proton-proton collision data taken at a center-of-mass energy of √s=13  TeV were collected between 2015 and 2018 by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139  fb−1. A search, emulating the recursive jigsaw reconstruction technique with easily reproducible laboratory-frame variables, is performed. The two excesses observed in the 2015–2016 data recursive jigsaw analysis in the low-mass three-lepton phase space are reproduced. Results with the full data set are in agreement with the Standard Model expectations. They are interpreted to set exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level on simplified models of chargino-neutralino pair production for masses up to 345 GeV