Complement component C4 structural variation and quantitative traits contribute to sex-biased vulnerability in systemic sclerosis

Altres ajuts: Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER), "A way of making Europe".Copy number (CN) polymorphisms of complement C4 play distinct roles in many conditions, including immune-mediated diseases. We investigated the association of C4 CN with systemic sclerosis (SSc) risk. Imputed total C4, C4A, C4B, and HERV-K CN were analyzed in 26,633 individuals and validated in an independent cohort. Our results showed that higher C4 CN confers protection to SSc, and deviations from CN parity of C4A and C4B augmented risk. The protection contributed per copy of C4A and C4B differed by sex. Stronger protection was afforded by C4A in men and by C4B in women. C4 CN correlated well with its gene expression and serum protein levels, and less C4 was detected for both in SSc patients. Conditioned analysis suggests that C4 genetics strongly contributes to the SSc association within the major histocompatibility complex locus and highlights classical alleles and amino acid variants of HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DPB1 as C4-independent signals

Salt torelance of mango rootstocks (Magnifera indica L. cv. Osteen)

Con objeto de determinar lso criterios más idóneos para estudiar la tolerancia relativa de portainjertos de mango (Mangifera indica L.) a altas concentraciones de C1- y Na+ presentes en las aguas de riego, se sometieron a estudios dos portainjertos, Gomera-1 y Gomera-3, injertados con el cv. Osteen. Las plantas fueron expuestas a riego con aguas salinas medidas por medio de su conductividad eléctrica (1,02; 1,50; 2,00 y 2,50 dS m-1). Los resultados indicaron diferencias en la retención de elementos tóxicos entre los tejidos de los diferentes órganos (raíces, tallo y hojas) de los portainjertos. El portainjerto Gomera-3 absorbió mayor cantidad de C1- y Na+ que el Gomera-1, siendo por tanto más sensible. En cambio, Gomera-1 fue más tolerante, lo cual estaría asociado con su capacidad de restringir la absorción y transporte de C1- y Na+ desde el sistema radicular hacia la parte aérea. El C1- fue mucho más tóxico en las hojas tanto del portainjerto como del cultivar, mientras que el Na+ lo fue en als raíces. El presente estudio revela una mayor adaptabilidad de Gomera-1 a condiciones salinas, y hace factible su empleo como portainjerto en zonas con aguas de baja calidad

Impact of salinity on macro- and micronutrient uptake in mango (Mangifera indica L. cv. Osteen) with different rootstocks

Two mango (Mangifera indica L.) rootstocks Gomera-1 and Gomera-3, grafted with the scion Osteen, were irrigated at four different NaCl concentrations measured by electrical conductivity (1.02, 1.50, 2.00 and 2.50 dS m-1). The aim was to determine the impact of salinity on macro- and micronutrient uptake. The nutrient imbalances from the effect of salinity on nutrient uptake, availability and partitioning within the plant resulted in less injurious with Gomera-1. Thus, the results corroborated the higher capability of Gomera-1 respect to Gomera-3 rootstocks to better adapt to saline conditions. The saline irrigation in leaves significantly raised the concentration of P, Ca, Fe, Zn and Mn, and lowered the Mg of both rootstocks, tending to decrease the N, and increase K and Cu. In the stem the values for N, Ca, Mg and Cu significantly augmented, whereas Zn tended to decrease. The root system registered a significant decrease of P, K and Mg and increase of N, Fe, Mn and Cu, while the fibrous root tended to concentrate most nutrients with more intensity than did the main root. With Gomera-1 the micronutrient concentrations in roots was higher than Gomera-3 in response to rising NaCl concentrationDos portainjertos de mango (Mangifera indica L.) Gomera-1 y Gomera-3, injertados con el cv. Osteen fueron sometidos a riego con cuatro concentraciones diferentes de NaCl, medidas por la conductividad eléctrica (1,02; 1,50; 2,00 y 2,50 dS m-1). El objetivo fue determinar el impacto de la salinidad en la absorción de macro y micronutrientes. Los desequilibrios nutricionales provocados por el efecto de la salinidad en la absorción de nutrientes, disponibilidad y distribución en la planta resultaron menos perjudiciales con Gomera-1. Así, los resultados obtenidos corroboran la mayor capacidad del portainjerto Gomera-1 respecto de Gomera-3 para adaptarse a las condiciones salinas. El riego salino en ambos portainjertos incrementó significativamente la concentración foliar de P, Ca, Fe, Zn y Mn, redujo el Mg, y además se registró una tendencia al descenso de N y al incremento de K y Cu. En los tallos los valores para N, Ca, Mg y Cu se incrementaron significativamente, mientras el Zn tendió al descenso. El sistema radical registró un descenso significativo de P, K y Mg, y un incremento de N, Fe, Mn y Cu; además la raíz fibrosa tendió a concentrar la mayoría de nutrientes con más intensidad que la raíz principal. Con Gomera-1, en respuesta al ascenso de la concentración de NaCl, la concentración de micronutrientes en las raíces fue mayor que con Gomera-

Mitigación de la erosión de suelos en plantaciones de almendro por cubiertas vegetales: implicaciones para la agricultura sostenible de montaña (SE España)

The conservation and sustainable management of soil and water resources are some of the biggest challenges in rainfed agricultural systems. During two hydrological years, we have studied the rates of erosion and soil runoff from hillside farming in three types of vegetation: barley (Hordeum vulgare), vetch (Vicia sativa) and thyme (Thymbra capitata), in an extensive planting of almond (Prunus amygdalus). The esperiment was conducted in Lanjaron (Granada, SE Spain) with closed erosion plots of 144 m2 (24 mx 6 m) on a hillside with a slope of 35%. Three meter wide vegetable strips were arranged intermittently and across the slope between rows of almond trees. The recordsof erosion and agricultural runoff were significantly lower in plots covered with thyme, in contrast to those recorded with vetch. The effectiveness of the thyme-covered over the barley and vetch ones in controlling erosion and runoff exceeded 69 and 67%, respectively. Cover crops while cutting and stopping the path of surface runoff retained transported sediments and promote their infiltration into the soil. Besides, the remaining runoff with much less energy can reinfiltrate on the ground before being intercepted by the next swath. We have concluded that the combination of growing woody plant and cover stripes represents an efficient model of adaptation to the traditional systems to improve productivity and sustainability of mountain agriculture in semiarid climate.La conservación y gestión sostenible de los recursos suelo y agua constituyen uno de los mayores retos de los sistemas agrícolas de secano. Durante dos años hidrológicos se han estudiado las tasas de erosión y escorrentía de un suelo de cultivo en ladera con tres tipos de cubierta vegetal: cebada (Hordeum vulgare), veza (Vicia sativa), y tomillo (Thymbra capitata) en una plantación extensiva de almendros (Prunus amygdalus). El ensayo se realizó en Lanjarón (Granada, SE España) con parcelas cerradas de erosión de 144 m2 (24 m x 6 m) en una ladera con pendiente del 35%. Las franjas vegetales de 3 m de ancho se dispusieron de forma intermitente y transversal a la pendiente entre hileras de árboles de almendro. Los registros de erosión y escorrentía agrícolas fueron significativamente inferiores en las parcelas con cubiertas de tomillo, en contraste con las registradas con veza. La efectividad de las cubiertas de tomillo respecto a las de cebada y veza en el control de erosión y escorrentía superaron el 69 y 67%, respectivamente. Las cubiertas vegetales al recortar y frenar la trayectoria de la escorrentía superficial retienen los sedimentos transportados y promueven su infiltración en el suelo. Asimismo, la escorrentía remanente con mucho menos energía puede reinfiltrarse en el suelo antes de ser interceptada por la siguiente franja. Se concluye que la asociación de cultivo leñoso con franjas de cubiertas vegetales representa un modelo eficiente de adaptación a los sistemas tradicionales para la mejora de la productividad y sostenibilidad de la agricultura de montaña de clima semiárido

High reduction of erosion and nutrient losses by decreasing harvest intensity of lavender grown on slopes

International audienc

High reduction of erosion and nutrient losses by decreasing harvest intensity of lavender grown on slopes

In Mediterranean countries, where rainfall is scarce and irregular, intensive agriculture promotes erosion and nutrient losses from soil, ending eventually in contamination of water bodies. Wild shrubs may protect the soil against the erosivity of raindrops. However, some shrubs such as wild lavender are traditionally harvested by uprooting the entire plant. Thus, we studied here the impact of harvesting only a part of the plant biomass. Cultivating lavender, Lavandula lanata L., in erosion plots in Lanjarón, Granada, Spain, we studied the effect of two harvest intensities of 25% and 50% of the plant biomass, on soil erosion, runoff, nutrient loss (NPK) and soil-water dynamics. Our results show that decreasing the harvest intensity from 50% to 25% reduced soil loss by 67%: from 143 to 46 kg soil ha$^{-1 }$yr$^{-1}$. Water runoff was also decreased by 59%: from 13 to 5 mm yr$^{-1}$. These findings demonstrate that the rational harvest of cultivated aromatic plants protected the soil against erosion due to the reduction of soil-particle detachment by raindrop impact, and consequently avoided mechanical soil movement. Further, decreasing the harvest intensity from 50% to 25% reduced N losses by 65%, P losses by 42% and K losses by 64%. Soil-water content at 5, 10 and 20 cm deep was also higher for a harvest intensity of 25% than for a harvest intensity of 50%. In conclusion, this study supports the cultivation of lavender instead of wild harvest, following a rational harvest of biomass for reducing erosion and pollution as well as conserving soil-water content

Benefits of plant strips for sustainable mountain agriculture

Erosion degrades soil quality in agricultural ecosystems, thereby reducing the productivity of the land. Semi-natural vegetation and diverse cropping systems have been converted into monocultures with low tree densities, leaving the soil unprotected. We evaluated the association in soil- and water-conservation systems with production in traditional almond orchards and the beneficial impact of plant strips in mountainous agriculture. Soil loss, runoff and nutrient loss over a four-year period (2002–2005) were monitored in hillside erosion plots with almond trees under different soil-management systems: (1) non-tillage with sage (Salvia lavandulifolia L. subspecies Oxyodon) strips 3 m wide; (2) non-tillage with rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) strips, (3) non-tillage with thyme (Thymus baeticus L. Boiss. exlacaita) strips, and (4) conventional tillage on the south flank of the Sierra Nevada (Lanjaron) in south-eastern Spain. Also, the nut yield from almond trees, and the biomass from aromatic-shrub strips were measured. The erosion plots, located on a 35% slope, were 144 m$^{2}$ in area. The plant-cover strips, 3 m wide, ran across the slope. Our results show that the most effective treatment proved to be non-tillage with thyme strips, reducing the annual soil loss by 93% and runoff by 80%, with respect to conventional tillage. Non-tillage with rosemary strips reduced soil loss by 91% and runoff by 82%, with respect to conventional tillage, while these percentages were 69% and 51%, respectively, for non-tillage with sage strips. In addition, all the treatments as a whole, in comparison with conventional tillage, revealed that the plant strips were the decisive factor in the reduction of NPK losses by surface runoff. The average nut yield from non-tillage with sage strips, non-tillage with rosemary strips, non-tillage with thyme strips and conventional tillage during the study period was 2.4, 3.2, 3.8 and 4.5 kg tree$^{-1}$, respectively, and the essential oil yield from sage, rosemary and thyme strips was 5.0, 8.7 and 10.8 L ha$^{-1}$, respectively. The non-tillage with thyme strips decreased nutrient loading in surface waters and thus had a positive impact on the environment while simultaneously maintaining reasonable almond-production levels. Thus, the combination of orchard trees with shrubs provided a viable option to conserve soil and water in hilly areas with opportunities to increase overall land productivity as well as sustainable agro-environmental measures

WABOL: A conceptual water balance model for analyzing rainfall water use in olive orchards under different soil and cover crop management strategies

A water balance model developed to simulate the effect of different soil management alternatives, as for instance conventional tillage or cover crop, on soil water balance has been implemented in a user friendly interface in order to allow its use by technicians and other stakeholder in the olive sector. In spite of this simplified interface for the user, the model uses process-based methodologies to describe the key processes controlling water balance in rainfed olive orchards, such as runoff, deep percolation, cover crop growth, soil evaporation and olive and cover crop transpiration. Model predictions were evaluated using 3-year period of runoff and soil moisture data for different soil managements from an experimental field located in an olive orchard in Southern Spain. Comparison of simulated results with experimental data suggests that the model predicts satisfactorily runoff losses and soil moisture. Thus, annual runoff simulation provided a RMSE of 4.4 mm and the model efficiency was in general higher than 0.5. This suggests that the described model could be a useful tool for stakeholders to carry out a complete evaluation of different soil management alternatives in olive orchards. Finally, an example of an application of the model is presented. In this example, the model is used to evaluate the impact of using a cover crop, including different mowing dates, on the different components of the soil water balance compared to conventional tillage for the conditions of Cordoba, Southern Spain, using a 50 year long record. This exercise indicates that the use of a cover crop in these conditions have a negative impact on olive transpiration (25% average reduction), although this impact can be mitigated using an early date killing of the cover crop, March 15th for the conditions simulated in this exercise.The authors wish to thank P08-AGR-03643 (Andalusian Government), AGL2009-12936-C03-01 (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation) and FEDER funds (Spanish Ministry for Agriculture, Food and the Environment) for its support in some of the phases of our study. We also acknowledge the Fund for Excellence of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Albanian government which supported the stay of the corresponding author at IAS-CSIC during this collaboration.Peer Reviewe

The AMS technique as an important tool for the measurement of astrophysical cross sections

Accelerator Mass Spectrometry is a technique commonly used to approach low concentrations of certain long half-life radioisotopes. The most important contribution of the technique is the accurate measure of organic sample ages, by separating masses 12,13 and 14 in the case of carbon allocated in such samples. However, the reach of AMS could cover many other scientific scopes, since it can give us a precise measure of a very small concentration of a radioisotope. On this direction, AMS can be used to approach reactions of interest for astrophysics, if we spot an specific radioisotope which concentration can be measure with AMS. Starting with this, we have selected specific reactions involving 14C, 10Be and 26Al, produced with slow neutrons from a reactor and positive ions at an accelerator. The main idea is to produce a particular reaction and later to measure the radioisotopic concentration using AMS. In this study our first results for 14C and 10Be nuclei produced with neutrons, and the preliminary results for 26Al nuclei produced with deuterium are shown