26 research outputs found
Comparative analysis of ephemeral river ecosystem services in agricultural and natural landscapes in mediterranean environments. A practical approach to Caia River (Portugal)
Mediterranean landscapes present a large amount of biodiversity and ecosystems leading to
their unique identity. In fact, it is increasingly acknowledged that these ecosystems provide a
large range of benefits, not only for the area where they are located but also for their
surroundings. Benefits that may vary from aesthetical values to socioeconomic aspects that
might influence territorial development, including also the preservation of those ecosystems.
The ephemeral and intermittent rivers provide several and pivotal ecosystem services within to
the environment. However, these services differ a lot from agricultural to natural landscapes â
e.g. agricultural landscapes structure Ì is susceptible to dramatic changes through the seasons
and water cycles.
Thus, a comparison study between agricultural and natural Mediterranean environments
landscapes have been carried out â allowing to deeply understand ephemeral rivers ecosystems
systems and their dynamics. Considering the purpose of the study - a comparison analysis
between river ecosystem services in agricultural and natural landscapes in Mediterranean
environments have been conducted. Therefore, a Cross-Border ephemeral river â Caia River
(Portugal-Spain) have been selected as a case study. The comparison has covered cultural,
aesthetic, functional and socio-economic ecosystem services; showing the relevance of the functions granted by the river
Comparative analysis of ephemeral river ecosystem services in agricultural and natural landscapes in Mediterranean environments. A Practical Approach to Caia River
Comparative analysis of ephemeral river ecosystem services in agricultural and natural landscapes in
Mediterranean environments. A Practical Approach to Caia River. A comparison study between agricultural and
natural Mediterranean environments landscapes
The Multivariated Effect of City Cooperation in Land Use Planning and Decision-Making Processes: A European Analysis
Spatial and urban planning processes regarding border cooperation have reached unprecedented levels in recent decades, not only due to their potential for territorial integration, i.e., infrastructure construction and planning activities worldwide. Bearing in mind the European project, for a united and strong network of nations, this scenario is more evident in European territories. In this regard, through multivariated analyzes of city cooperation on European border areas, it is possible to identify the factors that influence the territorial success and also a sustainable regional development and even their effects over the urban agglomerations. From the identified factors, the study pointed out one that is common to all cases: connectivity-movement between cities
Dynamics of the Land Use Changes and the Associated Barriers and Opportunities for Sustainable Development on Peripheral and Insular Territories: The Madeira Island (Portugal)
Considering the complex dynamics, patterns, and particularities that peripheral and insular territories/regions presentâe.g., as the fragility, they show to achieve a sustainable development and growthâa study that analyzes the land uses of this territories is seen as pivotal to identify barriers and opportunities for a long-term sustained development. Contextually, a general analysis was carried out through case study research methods covering those territorial typologies of the insular territory of Madeira Island, Portugal. The study, which was carried out through GIS mapping tools, enabled us to identify the land use changes in the last decades over the territoryâallowing to establish a relation and identification of the associated barriers and opportunities presented by the territories to face the emerging sustainable development challenges. The study reveals the evident limitations of âultra-peripheralâ territories not only by the physical spatial dimensions but also by the difficulty to reconvert land uses. Thus, the main actors and their policies over the territory are even more relevant and need to be conducted in a more reasonable wayâconsidering the fragility of this regions; such actions present higher impact over the territory and over their inhabitantsâ lifeâs quality standards and finally on the long-term sustainability
Assessing Ecosystem Services Delivered by Public Green Spaces in Major European Cities
In the last decades, there was a significant population growth in urban areas. In this regard, the European major cities are not an exception; in fact, they are even still more affected by that populational exodus and consequently for an urban growth. Therefore, and considering that the urban parks in the cities are not growing at the same pace, a question is raised: âAre the public green spaces in the European major cities still able to provide the needed ecosystem services to their populations?â Based on the above-mentioned question, the present chapter aims to provide the first insights and answers to this question. Contextually, the study uses a case study research (CSR) method over several European major cities. Besides, GIS tools crossing statistical data are also used to analyze the data and consequently understood and establish a state of the art regarding this relevant issue
Interactions between surrounding landscape biodiversity and intermittent rivers in mediterranean environments â case study of the Caia River
Landscape is a dynamic mosaic of various structures interacting together. Neglecting or
overusing one part of this mosaic may boost up or damage the development of others. For
instance, overgrazing may increase soil erosion process which may clog a river/stream. In
this regard land use changes, climate change and landscape management may lead to
increase the intermittency of the surface watercourses, as well as in the ecosystem services
provided by riverscapes for humans. Therefore, the present research focus on the existing
interactions between the Caia River, an intermittent river located in the Mediterranean
region, and its surrounding agricultural and natural landscapes. The performed analyses
considered the identification of the existing interaction between natural and agricultural
landscapes with the Caia River defining the predictable ecosystem services provided by each
element of the landscape and assessing the potential decrease of the ecosystem services
provided in case of landscape changes, which according to the performed research might
enclose significant impacts both in ecologic and socioeconomic terms
Hypothalamic mTOR signaling mediates the orexigenic action of ghrelin
Current evidence suggests that ghrelin, a stomach derived peptide, exerts its orexigenic action through specific modulation of Sirtuin1 (SIRT1)/p53 and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathways, which ultimately increase the expression of agouti-related protein (AgRP) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus (ARC). However, there is a paucity of data about the possible action of ghrelin on alternative metabolic pathways at this level. Here, we demonstrate that ghrelin elicits a marked upregulation of the hypothalamic mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway. Of note, central inhibition of mTOR signaling with rapamycin decreased ghrelinâs orexigenic action and normalized the mRNA expression of AgRP and NPY, as well as their key downstream transcription factors, namely cAMP response-element binding protein (pCREB) and forkhead box O1 (FoxO1, total and phosphorylated). Taken together, these data indicate that, in addition to previous reported mechanisms, ghrelin also promotes feeding through modulation of hypothalamic mTOR pathway.The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Communityâs Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007â2013) under grant agreement n° 281854 - the ObERStress project (ML) and 245009 - the Neurofast project (RN, CD and ML), Xunta de Galicia (ML: 10PXIB208164PR; RN: 2010/14), Junta de AndalucĂa (MTS: P08-CVI-03788), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) (ML: PS09/01880), MINECO co-funded by the FEDER Program of EU (MTS: BFU2011-25021; RN: RyC-2008-02219 and SAF2009-07049; ML: RyC-2007-00211; CD: BFU2011-29102). LM is a recipient of a fellowship from Fundação para a CiĂȘncia e Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal (SFRH/BD/65379/2009). CIBER de FisiopatologĂa de la Obesidad y NutriciĂłn is an initiative of ISCIIIS
Dysregulation of the endocannabinoid signaling system in the cerebellum and brainstem in a transgenic mouse model of spinocerebellar ataxia type-3.
Spinocerebellar ataxia type-3 (SCA-3) is a rare disease but it is the most frequent type within the autosomal dominant inherited ataxias. The disease lacks an effective treatment to alleviate major symptoms and to modify disease progression. Our recent findings that endocannabinoid receptors and enzymes are significantly altered in the post-mortem cerebellum of patients affected by autosomal-dominant hereditary ataxias suggest that targeting the endocannabinoid signaling system may be a promising therapeutic option. Our goal was to investigate the status of the endocannabinoid signaling system in a transgenic mouse model of SCA-3, in the two CNS structures most affected in this disease cerebellum and brainstem. These animals exhibited progressive motor incoordination, imbalance, abnormal gait, muscle weakness, and dystonia, in parallel to reduced in vivo brain glucose metabolism, deterioration of specific neuron subsets located in the dentate nucleus and pontine nuclei, small changes in microglial morphology, and reduction in glial glutamate transporters. Concerning the endocannabinoid signaling, our data indicated no changes in CB2 receptors. By contrast, CB1 receptors increased in the Purkinje cell layer, in particular in terminals of basket cells, but they were reduced in the dentate nucleus. We also measured the levels of endocannabinoid lipids and found reductions in anandamide and oleoylethanolamide in the brainstem. These changes correlated with an increase in the FAAH enzyme in the brainstem, which also occurred in some cerebellar areas, whereas other endocannabinoid-related enzymes were not altered. Collectively, our results in SCA-3 mutant mice confirm a possible dysregulation in the endocannabinoid system in the most important brain structures affected in this type of ataxia, suggesting that a pharmacological manipulation addressed to correct these changes could be a promising option in SCA-3.This study has been supported by MICINN (SAF2009-11847 and SAF2015-68580-C2-1-R), CIBERNED (CB06/05/0089), "Fundacion Eugenio Rodriguez Pascual" and the Research and Education Component of the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Carmen Rodriguez-Cueto was a predoctoral fellow supported by FPI Program-Ministry of Science. Authors are indebted to Yolanda Garcia-Movellan for administrative support
Common Regional Development Strategies on Iberian Territories - A Framework for Comprehensive Border Corridors Governance: Establishing Integrated Territorial Development
Although the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) has made a considerable contribution to increasing transport infrastructure and improving transport services, it still often seems that border regions have reduced accessibility compared to central regions. The Iberian border regions of Alto-Alentejo (Portugal) and Badajoz (Spain) were analyzed. Studies conducted in the Iberian territories confirm some of these regionsâ unsustainability and the non-impact on the inhabitantsâ quality of life. Also, a few questions arise: Can we verify the change in methods and measures used by development strategies? Is it necessary to acquire a more comprehensive view of corridor flows and interactions through common regional development strategies for managing development corridors? Will we influence the change of the methodological approach to be strategic and that it does not imply a corridor only in terms of the flow and mobility of people and goods, but also the search for the causes of movements in growth corridors? So, infrastructure and connectivity planning, regional economic development, and land use planning are critical contexts in developing territorial policies in the planning of development of corridors and their integration into development processes. This study proposes a framework for strategic corridor governance to increase accessibility and regional equity
Sustainability Indicators in the Southwest of Iberian Peninsula. Highlighting the Euro-region EUROACE: The OTALEX-C Project.
EUROACE is the name given to the Euro-region covering Alentejo and Centro in Portugal and Extremadura in Spain, since the biophysical perspective, it is mainly characterized by the topography and climate of the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. The evolution of these two variables have allowed developing a wide variety of soils and a considerable amount of their typologies diversity, as well. The OTALEX C Project team, a cooperation formed by the direct collaboration of Portuguese and Spanish entities creating an active cross-border cooperation (CBC) strategy, belonging to the three levels of administration: national, regional and local. Sharing common problems was enable to develop common solutions for the territories as the example of the OTALEX C Spatial Data Infrastructure (IDE OTALEX C) - a set of indicators that may contribute to the sustainability of the mentioned territory. Those indicators cover a lot of biophysical variables: hydrology, climate, soil, vegetation, and fauna, among many others. The criteria selection of such indicators was carried out taking into account the possibility of a constant updating on the EUROACE territory, as well as they adapting to the Sustainable Development Indicators (SDIs), which are used by the EU Sustainable Development Strategy (EUSDS). With the data collection procedure has been possible to relate soil, weather and vegetation, enabling to analyze issues regarding with the ecosystems functioning as well as their biodiversity and vegetal distribution on the soil, which along, with their structure shape the landscape, where the arboreal stratum constitutes one of they principal components. Major results show that those indicators are helpful tools for territorial management which favoring the conservation and sustainable development
of the territories.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio