Dissolved organic nitrogen production and export by meridional overturning in the eastern subpolar North Atlantic

Research articleDissolved organic matter (DOM) is produced in the surface and exported towards the deep ocean, adding ∼ 2 PgC/year to the global carbon export. Due to its central role in the Meridional Overturning Circulation, the eastern subpolar North Atlantic (eSPNA) contributes largely to this export. Here we quantify the transport and budget of dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) in the eSPNA, in a box delimited by the OVIDE 2002 section and the Greenland-Iceland-Scotland sills. The Meridional Overturning Circulation exports >15.9 TgN/year of DON downward and, contrary to the extended view that these are materials of subtropical origin, up to 33% of the vertical flux derives from a net local DON production of 7.1 ± 2.6 TgN/year. The low C:N molar ratio of DOM production (7.4 ± 4.1) and the relatively short transit times in the eSPNA (3 ± 1 year) suggest that local biogeochemical transformations result in the injection of fresh bioavailable DOM to the deep ocean.Versión del editor3,79

The impact of global platforms on media competition and on the results of European communication companies

The market value and capitalization of traditional media companies have dropped dramatically in the last five years. This is due to the evolution of digital platforms and the emergence of global communications mega-corporations that have since absorbed the distribution of new information and entertainment content. It is also a consequence of the aggregation of value-added services generated through incessant innovation. Communications mega-corporations, the GAFANs (Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Netflix), and audiovisual and telecommunications platforms reached market capitalizations ranging from 56% to 170% in the last five years (2012-17) respectively, whilst those of traditional media did not exceed 75 percent. Asymmetries on competition regulations against traditional media and the political alarm ignited by the so-called fake news or scandals due to the mishandling of users data awakened the European states and the EU about the urgency of filling the legal gap existing around the development of such platforms, particularly in order to demand rules and responsibilities comparable to those that apply to editorial groups.La cotización y capitalización de las empresas de medios tradicionales se ha hundido en los últimos cinco años ante la evolución de las plataformas digitales y la conformación de mega grupos globales de comunicación que absorben la distribución de los nuevos contenidos informativos y de entretenimiento, así como la agregación de los servicios de valor añadido generados a través de su incesante innovación. Los mega grupos de comunicación, los GAFAN (Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple y Netflix), y las plataformas de audiovisual y telecomunicaciones lograron en los últimos cinco años (2012-17) capitalizaciones de entre el 560 y el 170% respectivamente, frente a las de los medios tradicionales, que no pasaron del 75 por ciento. La asimetría de la regulación de la competencia frente a los medios tradicionales y la alarma política provocada por las fake news o los escándalos del uso impropio de datos de los usuarios despertó a los estados europeos y a la propia UE sobre la urgencia de llenar el vacío legal sobre el desarrollo de las plataformas para exigirles reglas de juego y responsabilidades como a los grupos editoriales

Changes in Spanish lifestyle and dietary habits during the COVID-19 lockdown

Purpose: The COVID-2019 pandemic forced many governments to declare the 'to stay at home' which encouraged social distancing and isolation among citizens. The aim of this study was to assess the dietary and lifestyle habit changes that occurred during home confinement in Spain. Methods: An European online survey was launched in April 2020. This included 70 questions on sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, dietary habits, including key Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) foods. A total of 945 Spanish adults from 1268 European that completed the online survey were included in the analysis. Results: Most of the Spanish participants adopted healthier dietary habits during home lockdown, which was translated to a higher MedDiet adherence. However, a negative impact on physical activity levels, sleep quality or smoking rates was observed. Low MedDiet adherence was associated with a higher risk of weight gain (OR = 1.53, CI 1.1-2.1; p = 0.016), while no snacking between meals reduced the risk by 80% (OR = 0.20, CI 0.09-0.45, p < 0.001) and eating more quantity, considering portion size, increased body weight gain risk almost sixfold more. Conclusion: To conclude, although dietary habits were improved during home lockdown, certain unhealthy behaviours (e.g. increased snacking between meals, increased food intake, and an increase in sedentary behaviour) were increased

A Comparative Study of the Efficacy of an Intervention with a Nutritional Supplement for Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease: A Randomized Trial.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) involves heterogeneous diseases that affect the renal structure and function. Malnutrition plays a crucial role during patients with CKD on hemodialysis (HD) treatment and is associated with an increased rate and duration of hospitalizations. The aim of this randomized, parallel, intervention-controlled trial was to assess whether the use of daily supplementation with a new nutritional product developed by the Grand Fontaine Laboratories improves the nutritional status and anthropometric parameters of stage 5 CKD patients, compared with standard renal dietary advice, after three months of follow-up. Dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, physical activity, and blood samples were collected at baseline and after three months of intervention. Significant improvements were observed within the intervention group in body weight (1.5 kg [95% CI: 0.9 to 2.12 kg]) and BMI (0.54 kg/m2 [95% CI: 0.31 to 0.77]; p-value between groups, 0.002 and 0.006, respectively). In the control group, significant decreases were observed in transferrin saturation (−5.04% [95% CI: −8.88 to −1.21]) and alpha-tocopherol levels (−3.31 umol/L [95% CI: −6.30 to −0.32]). We concluded that daily dietary intake of a specific renal nutritional complement in CKD patients with or at risk of malnutrition may prevent deterioration in nutritional parameters

Factors controlling the community structure of picoplankton in contrasting marine environments

The effect of inorganic nutrients on planktonic assemblages has traditionally relied on concentrations rather than estimates of nutrient supply. We combined a novel dataset of hydrographic properties, turbulent mixing, nutrient concentration, and picoplankton community composition with the aims of (i) quantifying the role of temperature, light, and nitrate fluxes as factors controlling the distribution of autotrophic and heterotrophic picoplankton subgroups, as determined by flow cytometry, and (ii) describing the ecological niches of the various components of the picoplankton community. Data were collected at 97 stations in the Atlantic Ocean, including tropical and subtropical open-ocean waters, the northwestern Mediterranean Sea, and the Galician coastal upwelling system of the northwest Iberian Peninsula. A generalized additive model (GAM) approach was used to predict depth-integrated biomass of each picoplankton subgroup based on three niche predictors: sea surface temperature, averaged daily surface irradiance, and the transport of nitrate into the euphotic zone, through both diffusion and advection. In addition, niche overlap among different picoplankton subgroups was computed using nonparametric kernel density functions. Temperature and nitrate supply were more relevant than light in predicting the biomass of most picoplankton subgroups, except for Prochlorococcus and low-nucleic-acid (LNA) prokaryotes, for which irradiance also played a significant role. Nitrate supply was the only factor that allowed the distinction among the ecological niches of all autotrophic and heterotrophic picoplankton subgroups. Prochlorococcus and LNA prokaryotes were more abundant in warmer waters (>20 ∘C) where the nitrate fluxes were low, whereas Synechococcus and high-nucleic-acid (HNA) prokaryotes prevailed mainly in cooler environments characterized by intermediate or high levels of nitrate supply. Finally, the niche of picoeukaryotes was defined by low temperatures and high nitrate supply. These results support the key role of nitrate supply, as it not only promotes the growth of large phytoplankton, but it also controls the structure of marine picoplankton communities.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. CTM2012-30680Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. CTM2008-0626I-C03-01Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. REN2003-09532-C03-01Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. CTM2004-05174 -C02Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. CTM2011-25035Xunta de Galicia | Ref. 09MMA027604PRXunta de Galicia | Ref. EM2013/021European Commission | Ref. FP7, n. 261860Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. FJCI-641 2015-2571

Hepatic cyclooxygenase-2 expression protects against diet-induced steatosis, obesity and insulin resistance

Resumen del póster presentado a la Conferencia: FASEB SRC: Liver Biology: Fundamental Mechanisms and Translational Applications, celebrada en Keystone-Colorado (US) del 6 al 11 de julio de 2014.[Background and Aims: Accumulation evidence links obesity-induced inflammation as an important contributor to the induction of insulin resistance. Moreover, insulin resistance plays a key role in the pathophysiology of obesity-related diseases such as type 2 diabetes and non alcoholic fatty liver disease. Cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 catalyze the first step in prostanoid biosynthesis. Since adult hepatocytes fail to induce COX-2 expression regardless of the pro-inflammatory factors used, we have evaluated whether this lack of expression under mild pro-inflammatory conditions might constitute a permissive condition for the onset of insulin resistance. [Methods]: We evaluated the role of COX-2 expression in hepatocytes in a model of insulin resistance and altered energy homeostasis induced by high fat diet by metabolic parameters in transgenic mice constitutively expressing human COX-2 in hepatocytes. [Results]: COX-2 expression in hepatocytes protects from high fat diet-induced hepatic steatosis, obesity and hence insulin resistance, as demonstrated by a decreased hepatic steatosis, adiposity and adipocyte area, an enhanced insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance, decreased plasmatic and hepatic triglycerides and free fatty acids levels, increased adiponectin/leptin ratio and decreased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. COX-2 transgenic mice exhibited increased whole body energy expenditure and fatty acid oxidation. Moreover, when hepatic insulin signaling was analyzed, an increase in insulin receptor-mediated Akt phosphorylation was found in hCOX-2 transgenic mice. Similar results were obtained in human and murine hepatic cells expressing a COX-2 transgene. [Conclusion]: Constitutively expression of COX-2 in hepatocytes protects against adiposity, inflammation and hepatic insulin resistance in mice under high fat diet.Peer Reviewe

Maternal Dietary Inflammatory Index during Pregnancy Is Associated with Perinatal Outcomes: Results from the IMPACT BCN Trial

The information available on the effects of maternal dietary habits on systemic inflammation and adverse maternal outcomes is limited. We aimed to evaluate whether Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) score during pregnancy is associated with maternal body mass index (BMI), Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence, and perinatal outcomes. At 19-23 weeks' gestation, 1028 pregnant women were recruited. Dietary information was assessed using a 17-item dietary score to evaluate MD adherence and a validated 151-item food frequency questionnaire. DII score was established according to 33 food and nutritional proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory items. Participants were distributed into tertiles according to the DII score, where a lower DII score (first tertile) represented an anti-inflammatory diet and the third tertile represented the more proinflammatory diet. Maternal characteristics and perinatal outcomes were collected, and newborns' birthweight percentiles were calculated. Adjusted logistic regression models were used to assess the association of the DII score with maternal and perinatal characteristics, setting the third tertile as the reference group. Women in the third tertile showed lower adherence to MD score compared to the first tertile: median (25th to 75th percentile) 9 (7 to 11) vs. 6 (4.25 to 8), p < 0.001. The proinflammatory diet was significantly associated with a higher maternal pre-pregnancy BMI (adjusted β = 0.88; 95% CI: 0.31 to 1.45) and lower newborn's birthweight percentile (adjusted β = −9.84th; 95% CI: −19.6 to −0.12). These data show that a proinflammatory diet profile may be associated with maternal overweight and fetal undergrowth

Short-term variability in the activity and composition of the diazotroph community in a coastal upwelling system

Today we know that diazotrophs are common and active in nitrogen (N) replete regions, however the factors controlling their distribution remain elusive. Previous studies in upwelling regions revealed that the composition of diazotrophs responded to changes in hydrodynamic forcing over seasonal scales. Here we used high-frequency observations collected during a 3-week cruise in the upwelling region off NW Iberia to describe changes in the activity and composition of diazotrophs over shorter temporal scales. The cruise started after a strong upwelling event followed by a few days of relaxation-downwelling, and soon after another upwelling pulse. Higher N2 fixation rates (2.2 ± 0.7 µmol m-3 d-1) were measured during relaxation-downwelling, when surface nitrate concentration was low. During the fertilization associated with the upwelling, N2 fixation dramatically decreased to 0.10 ± 0.09 µmol m-3 d-1. The comparison with nitrate consumption and diffusion confirmed the minor role of N2 fixation (<1%) as a source of new N for primary production. The unicellular cyanobacterium UCYN-A2 was the dominant diazotroph during the cruise. UCYN-A2 abundance was four times higher during relaxation-downwelling (4x104 copies L-1) compared to upwelling conditions (0.2x104 copies L-1), when the unusual Epsilonproteobacteria increased their relative abundance. These results indicate that diazotrophs can respond rapidly to changes in the environment, and point out to the availability of N as a key factor controlling the activity, composition and distribution of diazotrophs in eutrophic regions