Diversity of bladed bangiales (Rhodophyta) in Western Mediterranean: Recognition of the genus Themis and descriptions of T. ballesterosii sp. nov., T. iberica sp. nov. and Pyropia parva sp. nov.

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Prediction of Mortality and Major Cardiac Events by Exercise Echocardiography in Patients With Normal Exercise Electrocardiographic Testing

ObjectivesWe sought to assess the value of exercise echocardiography (EE) for predicting outcome in patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease and normal exercise electrocardiogram (ECG) testing.BackgroundThe prognostic value of EE in patients with normal exercise ECG testing has not been characterized.MethodsWe studied 4,004 consecutive patients (2,358 men, mean age [± SD] 59.6 ± 12.5 years) with interpretable ECG who underwent treadmill EE and did not develop chest pain or ischemic ECG abnormalities during the tests. Wall motion score index (WMSI) was evaluated at rest and with exercise, and the difference (ΔWMSI) was calculated. Ischemia was defined as the development of new or worsening wall motion abnormalities with exercise. End points were all-cause mortality and major cardiac events (MACE).ResultsOverall, 669 patients (16.7%) developed ischemia with exercise. During a mean follow-up of 4.5 ± 3.4 years, 313 patients died, and 183 patients had a MACE before any revascularization procedure. The 5-year mortality and MACE rates were 6.4% and 4.2% in patients without ischemia versus 12.1% and 10.1% in those with ischemia, respectively (p < 0.001). In the multivariate analysis, ΔWMSI remained an independent predictor of mortality (hazard ratio [HR]: 2.73, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.40 to 5.32, p = 0.003) and MACE (HR: 3.59, 95% CI: 1.42 to 9.07, p = 0.007). The addition of the EE results to the clinical, resting echocardiographic and exercise hemodynamic data significantly increased the global chi-square of the models for the prediction of mortality (p = 0.005) and MACE (p = 0.009).ConclusionsThe use of EE provides significant prognostic information for predicting mortality and MACE in patients with interpretable ECG and normal exercise ECG testing

Impact of collector string characteristics on experimental culture of Undaria pinnatifida (Harvey)Suringar and Laminaria saccharina (L.) Lamouroux (Laminariales, Phaeophyta)

The viability of industrial culture of Undaria pinnatifida (Harvey) Suringar and Laminaria saccharina (L.) Lamouroux using Western techniques requires an indoor phase to obtain collector strings on which many sporophytes are attached, which can then develop during the mariculture phase. The present paper studies the impact on final sporophtye richness of the characteristics of the string, and its number of previous treatments. Plaited string was clearly superior for both species, and a single previous treatment was enough to guarantee a suitable density of sporophytes for seeding.La viabilidad del cultivo industrial de Undaria pinnatifida (Harvey) Suringar y Laminaria saccharina (L.) Lamouroux según el sistema de cultivo occidental requiere que en una fase previa de laboratorio se obtengan colectores con hilo de siembra rico en embriones que se desarrollarán en la fase de cultivo en el mar. En el presente trabajo se atiende a la influencia que tienen en la densidad final de plántulas la naturaleza del hilo de siembra y el número de tratamientos previos a los que es sometido. Los resultados muestran claramente que el hilo trenzado tiene mejores cualidades para ambas especies, en particular para L. saccharina, y que para conseguir una densidad adecuada de embriones es suficiente someterlo a un único tratamiento de incremento de su microestructura.Instituto Español de Oceanografí

Independent estimates of marine population connectivity are more concordant when accounting for uncertainties in larval origins

Marine larval dispersal is a complex biophysical process that depends on the effects of species biology and oceanography, leading to logistical difficulties in estimating connectivity among populations of marine animals with biphasic life cycles. To address this challenge, the application of multiple methodological approaches has been advocated, in order to increase confidence in estimates of population connectivity. However, studies seldom account for sources of uncertainty associated with each method, which undermines a direct comparative approach. In the present study we explicitly account for the statistical uncertainty in observed connectivity matrices derived from elemental chemistry of larval mussel shells, and compare these to predictions from a biophysical model of dispersal. To do this we manipulate the observed connectivity matrix by applying different confidence levels to the assignment of recruits to source populations, while concurrently modelling the intrinsic misclassification rate of larvae to known sources. We demonstrate that the correlation between the observed and modelled matrices increases as the number of observed recruits classified as unknowns approximates the observed larval misclassification rate. Using this approach, we show that unprecedented levels of concordance in connectivity estimates (r = 0.96) can be achieved, and at spatial scales (20–40 km) that are ecologically relevan

Clinical significance of intraventricular gradient during effort in an adolescent karate player

The authors report the case of a 16-year-old boy who practices karate, who underwent medical evaluation because of atypical chest discomfort, related to strenuous effort. The ECG and echocardiogram findings were normal. The young boy did a treadmill stress test which was positive for myocardial ischemia. Late during the investigation, he underwent treadmill stress echocardiography, during which he developed intraventricular gradient of over 130 mmHg with end-systolic peak and systolic anterior movement (SAM) of the mitral valve. These echocardiographic findings were not present at rest and disappeared shortly after termination of exercise. The authors discuss the significance of this event. This leads us to advise withdrawal from participation in competitive sport according to the recomendations of the European Society of Cardiology. A possible role of exercise stress echo for intraventricular pressure gradient assessment in symptomatic athletes with structurally normal hearts is suggested

Case Report Thrombus in Transit through Patent Foramen Ovale

A thrombus in transit through a patent foramen ovale (PFO) with impending paradoxical embolism is an extremely rare event. Due to its transient nature, it is unable to identify the thrombus, and most of the cases have been reported at autopsy. We are reporting a case of thrombus straddling the foramen ovale which was diagnosed by echocardiography and treated surgically. Through this personal case, an exhaustive review of the literature was performed. There were 88 cases reported. We concluded that there is no medical consensus about the best option for treatment. Nevertheless, surgery, which is associated with fewer complications of recurrent embolic events than those of thrombolysis and anticoagulation, appeared to be the best approach in patients who are not at a high surgical risk. Anticoagulant treatment appears to be an acceptable therapeutic alternative to surgery, particularly in patients with comorbidities who are at high surgical risk and for patients with small PFO. Thrombolysis is linked to the highest mortality, which could be explained by the severity of the patient&apos;s initial presentation. In conclusion, and after the cumulative effects of these case reports, we propose a diagram consisting of the use of the three therapeutic options in the different clinical scenarios