Tamaño poblacional, uso del hábitat y relaciones interespecíficas de Agalychnis spurrelli (anura: hylidae) en un bosque húmedo tropical remanente del noroccidente de Ecuador

Throughout 2006 and 2007, at a small swamp in San Francisco del Cabo, northwestern Ecuador, monthly field expeditions were done to monitor a population of the leaf frog Agalychnis spurrelli with the following aims: (1) to determine population size and annual fluctuation; (2) to determine spatial distributional patterns and microhabitat resource partitioning; and (3) to analyze associations with other nocturnal frogs. We employed standardized sampling methods to study the population size, which included capture-recapture analysis using toe clip codes. In northwestern Ecuador, Agalychnis spurrelli presents highly effective population sizes, with local increments in relative density through rainy and breeding seasons, beginning in February. A low recapture rate was obtained and population size was projected between 1400 to 6000 individuals of Agalychnis spurrelli for Laguna del Diablo. Throughout the dry season this particular frog prefers the canopy of higher trees, descending only to low vegetation which occurs around the swamp when the breeding season begins. We obtained low rates in overlap and amplitude functional niche values, demonstrating a high level of specialization in resource partitioning in the habitat. Nine species of nocturnal anurans were identified around this body of water, among which, Hypsiboas rosenbergi and H. pellucens were the most similar species to A. spurrelli in resource use and spatial distribution at the swamp. The snake Leptodeira septentrionalis is its principal predator.Entre los años 2006 y 2007, en un pequeño humedal de la localidad de San Francisco del Cabo al noroccidente de Ecuador, monitoreamos mensualmente una población de la rana arborícola Agalychnis spurrelli. Nuestros objetivos fueron: (1) determinar el tamaño poblacional y las fluctuaciones anuales de la población, (2) evaluar la distribución espacial el hábitat por categoría de edad; y (3) analizar las asociaciones con otras especies de anuros relacionadas con la partición de recursos del sustrato, época reproductiva y sitio de reproducción. Se emplearon métodos estandarizados de muestreo para estudiar la dinámica y tamaño poblacional, los cuales incluían la captura-recaptura, codificados mediante el corte de falanges. La población de Agalychnis spurrelli podría alcanzar altos tamaños poblacionales, con incrementos de su densidad relativa y en su actividad reproductiva durante los períodos de lluvias, que inician desde el mes de Febrero. Se obtuvo una baja tasa de recaptura, con tamaños poblacionales calculados entre 1400 y 6000 individuos adultos para la Laguna del Diablo. Durante los períodos secos, esta especie prefiere los estratos altos del bosque, descendiendo hacia los bordes de la laguna solamente cuando comienzan los períodos de lluvia. Nueve especies de anuros nocturnos fueron identificados en los alrededores de la laguna, de los cuales Hypsiboas rosenbergi y H. pellucens fueron las más similares con A. spurrelli en el uso de recursos del hábitat. La serpiente Leptodeira septentrionalis es su principal depredador. Se reportan valores medianos en la amplitud y solapamiento del nicho, que refleja tendencias generalistas de esta especie en la distribución vertical y uso de sustratos en el humedal

Tamaño poblacional, uso del hábitat y relaciones interespecíficas de agalychnis spurrelli (anura: hylidae) en un bosque húmedo tropical remanente del noroccidente de Ecuador

Entre los años 2006 y 2007, en un pequeño humedal de la localidad de San Francisco del Cabo al noroccidente de Ecuador, monitoreamos mensualmente una población de la rana arborícola Agalychnis spurrelli. Nuestros objetivos fueron: (1) determinar el tamaño poblacional y las fluctuaciones anuales de la población, (2) evaluar la distribución espacial el hábitat por categoría de edad; y (3) analizar las asociaciones con otras especies de anuros relacionadas con la partición de recursos del sustrato, época reproductiva y sitio de reproducción. Se emplearon métodos estandarizados de muestreo para estudiar la dinámica y tamaño poblacional, los cuales incluían la captura-recaptura, codificados mediante el corte de falanges. La población de Agalychnis spurrelli podría alcanzar altos tamaños poblacionales, con incrementos de su densidad relativa y en su actividad reproductiva durante los períodos de lluvias, que inician desde el mes de Febrero. Se obtuvo una baja tasa de recaptura, con tamaños poblacionales calculados entre 1400 y 6000 individuos adultos para la Laguna del Diablo. Durante los períodos secos, esta especie prefiere los estratos altos del bosque, descendiendo hacia los bordes de la laguna solamente cuando comienzan los períodos de lluvia. Nueve especies de anuros nocturnos fueron identificados en los alrededores de la laguna, de los cuales Hypsiboas rosenbergi y H. pellucens fueron las más similares con A. spurrelli en el uso de recursos del hábitat. La serpiente Leptodeira septentrionalis es su principal depredador. Se reportan valores medianos en la amplitud y solapamiento del nicho, que refleja tendencias generalistas de esta especie en la distribución vertical y uso de sustratos en el humedal

ED020. Patrones espaciales de diversidad de insectos en Ecuador continental

Insects are one of the most important animal groups in the planet because they maintain ecosystems services and are an important part of the global animal biomass.  A great diversity of species makes this groups the most diverse of all animals. However, insect regional spatial diversity patterns are still poorly understood, being especially undocumented in the highly diverse regions, such as the Neotropics. Part of this issue is due to the inexistence of a harmonized insect occurrence database at national levels. Here, we use the case of continental Ecuador (excluding the Galápagos archipelago) to map the knowledge gaps in spatial patterns and regional diversity by making use of an extensive database.  Our principal result suggest that the Andes is the main biogeographical barrier in continental Ecuador. Amazonia and the western slope of the Andes are the most species-rich regions; the norther region concentrates the higher registered occurrences. Our results support conservation actions for this group, from biogeographic and macroecological perspective.Los insectos son uno de los grupos de animales más importantes del planeta porque mantienen los servicios ecosistémicos y son una parte importante de la biomasa animal global. Una gran diversidad de especies hace a este grupo el más diverso de todos los animales. Sin embargo, los patrones espaciales regionales de diversidad de insectos siguen siendo poco conocidos, estando especialmente indocumentados en las regiones de gran diversidad, como los es el Neotrópico. Parte de este problema se debe a la inexistencia de una base de datos armonizada de registros de insectos a nivel nacional. Aquí, utilizamos el caso de Ecuador continental (excluyendo el archipiélago de las Galápagos) para mapear los vacíos de conocimiento de los patrones espaciales y la diversidad regional haciendo uso de una extensa base de datos. Nuestro principal resultado sugiere que los Andes son la principal barrera biogeográfica en el Ecuador continental. La Amazonia y la vertiente occidental de los Andes son las regiones más ricas en especies; la región norte concentra los mayores registros de ocurrencias. Nuestros resultados apoyan las acciones de conservación de este grupo, desde la perspectiva biogeográfica y macroecológica

Teratohyla sornozai Cisneros-Heredia, Yánez-Muñoz y Ortega-Andrade es un sinónimo junior de Rulyrana orejuela Duellman y Burrowes (Amphibia, Anura, Centrolenidae)

Teratohyla sornozai was recently described [1] based on specimens collected at three locations in the provinces of Esmeraldas, Imbabura and Pichincha, northwestern Ecuador. In the original description[1], T sornozai differed from Rulyrana orejuela [2] by the shape of the muzzle (projected profile in T sornozai, truncated profile in R. orejuela), the extension of the membrane in the hands and feet (higher in T. sornozai), the presence of melanophores in the hands and feet (higher in R. orejuela), iris color (dark gray with a yellow circumpupilar ring in R. orejuela vs. gold with dark crosslinks in T. sornozai) and body size (higher in R. orejuela). However, the acquisition of more material about R. orejuela and reassessment of the specimens assigned to T. sornozai allowed us to determine that both names correspond to the same species. The differences observed in the specimens assigned to Teratohyla sornozai are due to intraspecific variation (eg, iris color) or ontogenetic changes (juvenile specimens of R. orejuela have less melanophores in the legs and to a greater extent in the foreleg and hoof membranes ). The variation in the shape of the snout appears to correspond to a common pattern observed in several species of Centrolenidae, where juvenile specimens have the muzzle projected in the side view or profile view. Based on this new evidence, we put Teratohyla sornozai Cisneros-Heredia, Yánez-Muñoz y Ortega-Andrade as a junior synonym of Rulyrana orejuela Duellman y Burrowes (Figures 1-2). With this change, the number of localities known for Rulyrana orejuela in Ecuador is increased to four: Mashpi, Saguangal [3], Río Naranjal y Canadé [1].Teratohyla sornozai fue recientemente descrita [1] sobre la base de especímenes colectados en tres localidades en las provincias de Esmeraldas, Imbabura y Pichincha, noroccidente del Ecuador. En la descripción original [1], T sornozai se diferenció de Rulyrana orejuela [2] por la forma del hocico (proyectado de perfil en T sornozai, truncado de perfil en R. orejuela), la extensión de la membrana en manos y pies (mayor en T. sornozai), la presencia de melanóforos en las manos y pies (mayor en R. orejuela), el color del iris (gris oscuro con un anillo circumpupilar amarillo en R. orejuela, vs. dorado con reticulaciones oscuras en T. sornozai), y el tamaño corporal (mayor en R. orejuela). Sin embargo, la adquisición de mayor material de R. orejuela y la re-evaluación de los especímenes asignados a T. sornozai permitieron determinar que ambos nombres corresponden a una misma especie. Las diferencias observadas en los especímenes asignados a Teratohyla sornozai se deben a variación intraespecífica (por ejemplo, el color del iris) o a cambios ontogénicos (los juveniles de R. orejuela presentan menos melanóforos en las patas, una mayor extensión en las membranas manuales y pediales). La variación en la forma del hocico parece corresponder a un patrón común observado en varias especies de Centrolenidae, donde los juveniles tienen el hocico proyectado en vista lateral o de perfil. Basados en esta nueva evidencia, colocamos a Teratohyla sornozai Cisneros-Heredia, Yánez-Muñoz y Ortega-Andrade como un sinónimo junior de Rulyrana orejuela Duellman y Burrowes (Figuras 1-2). Con este cambio, el número de localidades conocidas para Rulyrana orejuela en Ecuador se incrementa a cuatro: Mashpi, Saguangal [3], Río Naranjal y Canadé [1]

Nuevos datos de distribución de ranas de cristal (Amphibia: Centrolenidae) en el oriente de Ecuador, con comentarios sobre la diversidad en la región

We present new information on the latitudinal and altitudinal distribution of five species of recently-described or poorly-known glassfrogs from eastern Ecuador. We include novel data on its body size and natural history. Information on the diversity and biogeography of the centrolenid frogs of Eastern Ecuador is discussed, finding them associated with six vegetation formations distributed between the eastern Andean slopes and lowland Amazonia. We identify three important zones of diversity and endemism in Eastern Ecuador associated with the Napo, Pastaza, and Santiago river basins. The ecosystems of Low Montane and Foothill forests have the largest diversity and endemism of centrolenid frogs, however, 77% are threatened. It is vital to join effort to research and preserve this particular group of the Ecuadorian fauna.Presentamos nueva información que extiende la distribución latitudinal y altitudinal de cinco especies de ranas de cristal recientemente descritas y poco conocidas de la región oriental de Ecuador. Incluimos datos novedosos sobre su tamaño corporal e historia natural. Se discute información sobre la diversidad y biogeografía de ranas centrolenidas del oriente de Ecuador, encontrando que se encuentran asociadas con seis formaciones vegetales comprendidas entre las estribaciones orientales y la baja Amazonia. Identificamos tres importantes zonas de diversidad y endemismo en la región oriental de Ecuador asociadas con las cuencas hidrográficas de los ríos Napo, Pastaza y Santiago. Los ecosistemas de bosques Montano Bajos y Piemontanos concentran la mayor diversidad y endemismo para ranas centrolenidas, sin embargo 77% de ellas están amenazadas. Es trascendental juntar todos los esfuerzos posibles para investigar y conservar este substancial grupo de la fauna ecuatoriana

Improved functionalization of oleic acid-coated iron oxide nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles can providemultiple benefits for biomedical applications in aqueous environments such asmagnetic separation or magnetic resonance imaging. To increase the colloidal stability and allow subsequent reactions, the introduction of hydrophilic functional groups onto the particles’ surface is essential. During this process, the original coating is exchanged by preferably covalently bonded ligands such as trialkoxysilanes. The duration of the silane exchange reaction, which commonly takes more than 24 h, is an important drawback for this approach. In this paper, we present a novel method, which introduces ultrasonication as an energy source to dramatically accelerate this process, resulting in high-quality waterdispersible nanoparticles around 10 nmin size. To prove the generic character, different functional groups were introduced on the surface including polyethylene glycol chains, carboxylic acid, amine, and thiol groups. Their colloidal stability in various aqueous buffer solutions as well as human plasma and serum was investigated to allow implementation in biomedical and sensing applications.status: publishe

Photography-based taxonomy is inadequate, unnecessary, and potentially harmful for biological sciences

The question whether taxonomic descriptions naming new animal species without type specimen(s) deposited in collections should be accepted for publication by scientific journals and allowed by the Code has already been discussed in Zootaxa (Dubois & Nemésio 2007; Donegan 2008, 2009; Nemésio 2009a–b; Dubois 2009; Gentile & Snell 2009; Minelli 2009; Cianferoni & Bartolozzi 2016; Amorim et al. 2016). This question was again raised in a letter supported by 35 signatories published in the journal Nature (Pape et al. 2016) on 15 September 2016. On 25 September 2016, the following rebuttal (strictly limited to 300 words as per the editorial rules of Nature) was submitted to Nature, which on 18 October 2016 refused to publish it. As we think this problem is a very important one for zoological taxonomy, this text is published here exactly as submitted to Nature, followed by the list of the 493 taxonomists and collection-based researchers who signed it in the short time span from 20 September to 6 October 2016

Measuring universal health coverage based on an index of effective coverage of health services in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) involves all people receiving the health services they need, of high quality, without experiencing financial hardship. Making progress towards UHC is a policy priority for both countries and global institutions, as highlighted by the agenda of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and WHO's Thirteenth General Programme of Work (GPW13). Measuring effective coverage at the health-system level is important for understanding whether health services are aligned with countries' health profiles and are of sufficient quality to produce health gains for populations of all ages. Methods Based on the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019, we assessed UHC effective coverage for 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2019. Drawing from a measurement framework developed through WHO's GPW13 consultation, we mapped 23 effective coverage indicators to a matrix representing health service types (eg, promotion, prevention, and treatment) and five population-age groups spanning from reproductive and newborn to older adults (≥65 years). Effective coverage indicators were based on intervention coverage or outcome-based measures such as mortality-to-incidence ratios to approximate access to quality care; outcome-based measures were transformed to values on a scale of 0–100 based on the 2·5th and 97·5th percentile of location-year values. We constructed the UHC effective coverage index by weighting each effective coverage indicator relative to its associated potential health gains, as measured by disability-adjusted life-years for each location-year and population-age group. For three tests of validity (content, known-groups, and convergent), UHC effective coverage index performance was generally better than that of other UHC service coverage indices from WHO (ie, the current metric for SDG indicator 3.8.1 on UHC service coverage), the World Bank, and GBD 2017. We quantified frontiers of UHC effective coverage performance on the basis of pooled health spending per capita, representing UHC effective coverage index levels achieved in 2019 relative to country-level government health spending, prepaid private expenditures, and development assistance for health. To assess current trajectories towards the GPW13 UHC billion target—1 billion more people benefiting from UHC by 2023—we estimated additional population equivalents with UHC effective coverage from 2018 to 2023. Findings Globally, performance on the UHC effective coverage index improved from 45·8 (95% uncertainty interval 44·2–47·5) in 1990 to 60·3 (58·7–61·9) in 2019, yet country-level UHC effective coverage in 2019 still spanned from 95 or higher in Japan and Iceland to lower than 25 in Somalia and the Central African Republic. Since 2010, sub-Saharan Africa showed accelerated gains on the UHC effective coverage index (at an average increase of 2·6% [1·9–3·3] per year up to 2019); by contrast, most other GBD super-regions had slowed rates of progress in 2010–2019 relative to 1990–2010. Many countries showed lagging performance on effective coverage indicators for non-communicable diseases relative to those for communicable diseases and maternal and child health, despite non-communicable diseases accounting for a greater proportion of potential health gains in 2019, suggesting that many health systems are not keeping pace with the rising non-communicable disease burden and associated population health needs. In 2019, the UHC effective coverage index was associated with pooled health spending per capita (r=0·79), although countries across the development spectrum had much lower UHC effective coverage than is potentially achievable relative to their health spending. Under maximum efficiency of translating health spending into UHC effective coverage performance, countries would need to reach $1398 pooled health spending per capita (US$ adjusted for purchasing power parity) in order to achieve 80 on the UHC effective coverage index. From 2018 to 2023, an estimated 388·9 million (358·6–421·3) more population equivalents would have UHC effective coverage, falling well short of the GPW13 target of 1 billion more people benefiting from UHC during this time. Current projections point to an estimated 3·1 billion (3·0–3·2) population equivalents still lacking UHC effective coverage in 2023, with nearly a third (968·1 million [903·5–1040·3]) residing in south Asia. Interpretation The present study demonstrates the utility of measuring effective coverage and its role in supporting improved health outcomes for all people—the ultimate goal of UHC and its achievement. Global ambitions to accelerate progress on UHC service coverage are increasingly unlikely unless concerted action on non-communicable diseases occurs and countries can better translate health spending into improved performance. Focusing on effective coverage and accounting for the world's evolving health needs lays the groundwork for better understanding how close—or how far—all populations are in benefiting from UHC

Nurses' perceptions of aids and obstacles to the provision of optimal end of life care in ICU

Contains fulltext : 172380.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation