Decomposition analysis of Spanish life expectancy at birth

Using data from the Human Mortality Database (HMD), the paper analyzes the increase in the life expectancy of the Spanish population during the three decades, 1970-2001, in order to ascertain which age and sex groups have made the most progress in terms of increasing life expectancy. Within the theoretical context of Health Transition, the authors provide a brief description of the Spanish mortality during the XXth century across several indexes. The study uses a decomposition technique to separate changes in Spanish life expectancy at birth (e0) into age, sex, and time components. The most important components of change are found in the elderly, in young people, and in the evolution to sex differences in human mortality.decomposition, health, health transition, Human Mortality Database, life expectancy, mortality, mortality trends, Spain

Redes familiares cuidando a personas mayores dependientes: influencia del empleo y del estado civil de los hijos y las hijas

Our study addresses the care that children provide to the elderly, taking as a unit of analysis the support networks where they are framed. The objective is twofold: to investigate in their strategies to reconcile said dedication with employment, and in how the labor and family circumstances of each one condition their participation in the care. In its development we use qualitative methodology, specifically semi-structured interviews to obtain information and Grounded Theory to analyze it. The results show that, although responsibility is shared, the employment status of the siblings determines their contribution to parental care. They also collect common strategies to combine employment and care, such as the sacrifice of the professional career or the search for external support to the family, as well as the leading role that people who are in single situations usually assume. Within mixed networks, we also find that there are still gender differences.Nuestro estudio aborda el cuidado que sus hijos o hijas proveen a las personas mayores, tomando como unidad de análisis a las redes de apoyo en que se enmarcan. El objetivo es doble: indagar en sus estrategias para compaginar esa dedicación con el empleo y en cómo las circunstancias laborales y familiares de cada cual condicionan su participación en el cuidado. En su desarrollo usamos una metodología cualitativa, en concreto entrevistas semiestructuradas para obtener información y teoría fundamentada para analizarla. Los resultados demuestran que, aunque la responsabilidad sea compartida, el estatus laboral de los y las hermanas determina su contribución al cuidado parental. También recogen estrategias comunes para compaginar empleo y cuidado, como el sacrificio de la carrera profesional o la búsqueda de apoyo externo a la familia, así como el rol protagonista que suelen asumir quienes se encuentran en situación de soltería. Dentro de las redes mixtas, además, constatamos que siguen existiendo diferencias de género

CD44-high neural crest stem-like cells are associated with tumour aggressiveness and poor survival in neuroblastoma tumours

BACKGROUND: Neuroblastoma is a paediatric tumour originated from sympathoadrenal precursors and characterized by its heterogeneity and poor outcome in advanced stages. Intra-tumoral cellular heterogeneity has emerged as an important feature in neuroblastoma, with a potential major impact on tumour aggressiveness and response to therapy. CD44 is an adhesion protein involved in tumour progression, metastasis and stemness in different cancers; however, there has been controversies about the significance of CD44 expression in neuroblastoma and its relationship with tumour progression. METHODS: We have performed transcriptomic analysis on patient tumour samples studying the outcome of patients with high CD44 expression. Adhesion, invasion and proliferation assays were performed in sorted CD44high neuroblastoma cells. Tumoursphere cultures have been used to enrich in undifferentiated stem-like cells and to asses self-renewal and differentiation potential. We have finally performed in vivo tumorigenic assays on cell line-derived or Patient-derived xenografts. FINDINGS: We show that high CD44 expression is associated with low survival in high-grade human neuroblastoma, independently of MYCN amplification. CD44 is expressed in a cell population with neural crest stem-like features, and with the capacity to generate multipotent, undifferentiated tumourspheres in culture. These cells are more invasive and proliferative in vitro. CD44 positive cells obtained from tumours are more tumorigenic and metastatic, giving rise to aggressive neuroblastic tumours at high frequency upon transplantation. INTERPRETATION: We describe an unexpected intra-tumoural heterogeneity within cellular entities expressing CD44 in neuroblastoma, and propose that CD44 has a role in neural crest stem-like undifferentiated cells, which can contribute to tumorigenesis and malignancy in this type of cancer. FUNDING: Research supported by grants from the "Asociación Española contra el Cáncer" (AECC), the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation SAF program (SAF2016-80412-P), and the European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant to RP).Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation SAF program (SAF2016-80412-P

Factors influencing the ground thermal regime in a mid-latitude glacial cirque (Hoyo Empedrado, Cantabrian Mountains, 2006–2020)

.Air and near-surface ground temperatures were measured using dataloggers over 14 years (2006–2020) in 10 locations at 2262 to 2471 m.a.s.l. in a glacial cirque of the Cantabrian Mountains. These sites exhibit relevant differences in terms of substrate, solar radiation, orientation, and geomorphology. Basal temperature of snow (BTS) measurements and electrical resistivity tomography of the talus slope were also performed. The mean annual near-surface ground temperatures ranged from 5.1 °C on the sunny slope to 0.2 °C in the rock glacier furrow, while the mean annual air temperature was 2.5 °C. Snow cover was inferred from near-surface ground temperature (GST) data, estimating between 130 and 275 days per year and 0.5 to 7.1 m snow thickness. Temperature and BTS data show that the lowest part of the talus slope and the rock glacier furrow are the coldest places in this cirque, coinciding with a more persistent and thickest snow cover. The highest temperatures coincide with less snow cover, fine-grained soils, and higher solar radiation. Snow cover has a primary role in controlling GST, as the delayed appearance in autumn or delayed disappearance in spring have a cooling effect, but no correlation with mean annual near-surface ground temperatures exists. Heavy rain-over-snow events have an important influence on the GST. In the talus slope, air circulation during the snow-covered period produces a cooling effect in the lower part, especially during the summer. Significant inter-annual GST differences were observed that exhibited BTS limitations. A slight positive temperature trend was detected but without statistically significance and less prominent than nearby reference official meteorological stations, so topoclimatic conditions reduced the more global positive temperature trend. Probable existence of permafrost in the rock glacier furrow and the lowest part of the talus slope is claimed; however, future work is necessary to confirm this aspect.S

Rasgos morfométricos y morfodinámicos de los glaciares rocosos relictos de la Sierra de Gistredo (Montaña Cantábrica, León)

566 p.La constatación de glaciares rocosos relictos en el Noroeste de las Montañas Cantábricas se inicia al final de la década de los ochenta del siglo pasado con el trabajo de Alonso(1989) en la zona de Degaña-Leitariegos, existiendo nuevas aportaciones a lo largo de los noventa y principios de sigl

Coal pit lakes in abandoned mining areas in León (NW Spain): characteristics and geoecological significance

1-14 pMining activity introduces severe changes in landscapes and, subsequently, in land uses. One of the most singular changes is the existence of pit lakes, which occur in active and, more frequently, abandoned mines. Pit lakes are produced by water table interception when open-pit mines deepen. Their characteristics are highly variable, depending on the type of mine, the environment or the climate. In León province there is a long tradition of coal mining that dates back to the nineteenth century, and hundreds of open pits from the 1970s to 2018 have been opened, producing permanent landscape changes. This work analyses the main parameters, including morphological measurements, depth and pH values obtained from aerial photos and field work, of 76 coal pit lakes more than 30 m in length. The vast majority of these pit lakes were unknown until now and were not included in inventories or maps. The data obtained provide baseline knowledge that will allow, in the future, potential uses (storage of water for various uses, recreational use, wildlife habitat, and geological heritage sites) for these pit lakes and establish their importance as a new geoecological environment.S

Ejemplos de formas de relieve indicadoras de diferentes paleoclimas en la Cordillera Cantábrica

Las formas de relieve son el resultado de la acción de un conjunto de procesos que actúan bajo determinadas condiciones ambientales, es decir, bajo diferentes tipos de clima que configuran los sistemas morfoclimáticos. A lo largo del tiempo geológico se suceden sobre un mismo espacio diferentes sistemas climáticos cuyo resultado es la superposición de formas de relieve diversas y diferentes, lo que implica la existencia de formas heredadas que enriquecen los paisajes naturales e incrementan la geodiversidad. El estudio de varios ejemplos de herencias morfoclimáticas en la vertiente meridional de la Cordillera Cantábrica (formas de relieve kársticas, fluviales, glaciares, periglaciares) demuestra la sucesión de procesos y formas de relieve a escala del tiempo geológico en un espacio relativamente pequeño. Los ejemplos estudiados implican que el cambio climático es algo intrínsecamente unido a la sucesión de procesos geomorfológicos cuando la escala de análisis es el largo plazo, de miles o cientos de miles de año

Main components of life expectancy increase during the cardiovascular revolution in Spain

The circulatory system diseases have contributed decisively to an increase in life expectancy (LE) in Spain. The contribution to LE is calculated through a decomposition analysis by sex and five-year age groups. We divide the years studied into two periods, 1980–1996 and 1996–2012. Using the Human Cause-of-Death Database (HCD), we examine specific subcauses at a 4-digit ICD-10 level and how they contribute to the change in LE among men and among women. The analysis shows that cerebrovascular diseases (CBVDs) contribute most to years gained until 1996, while ischemic heart diseases (IHDs) contribute most thereafter. Among women, the largest increase is due to specific CBVDs subcauses; among men IHD subcauses also have an important role. Regarding contribution by age, gains by CVDs are particularly significant at older ages, while contributions by IHDs are more relevant from the age of 50 onwards, especially among men. Furthermore, the gender gap in LE is influenced by the different evolution of various circulatory diseases during the period of study, but the evolution of these diseases is not always reflected equally in both sexes. The study evidences the need for greater precision in the registers in order to take advantage of the potentialities of the 4-digit classification of the ICD, thus leading to a better in depth knowledge in health trends. Finally, it shows the mortality due to modifiable factors mainly classified in IHDs, and the consequent need for the Spanish health system to act on them.Las enfermedades del sistema circulatorio, han contribuido de manera decisiva al aumento de la esperanza de vida (LE) en España. Las contribuciones a la LE se calculan a través de un análisis de descomposición por sexo y grupos de edad quinquenales. Dividimos los años estudiados en dos períodos, 1980–1996 y 1996–2012. Utilizando la Human Cause-of-Death Database (HCD), examinamos subcausas específicas a un nivel de 4 dígitos de ICD-10 y cómo contribuyen al aumento o disminución de LE tanto en hombres como en mujeres. El análisis muestra que las enfermedades cerebrovasculares (CBVD) son las que más contribuyen a los años ganados hasta 1996, mientras que las enfermedades isquémicas (IHD) son las que más contribuyen posteriormente. Entre las mujeres, el mayor aumento se debe a subcausas específicas de las CBVD; en los hombres, las subcausas de IHD también tienen un papel importante. En lo que respecta a la contribución por edad, las ganancias por CBVDs son particularmente significativas en las edades mayores, mientras que las contribuciones por las IHD son más relevantes a partir de los 50 años, especialmente entre los hombres. La brecha entre hombres y mujeres en la LE está influenciada por la evolución diferente de varias enfermedades circulatorias durante el período de estudio, pero la evolución de estas enfermedades no siempre se refleja por igual en ambos sexos. Además, se pone en evidencia la necesidad de una mayor precisión en los registros para aprovechar las potencialidades de la clasificación a 4 dígitos de la CIE, alcanzando de este modo un conocimiento más profundo de las tendencias de salud. Finalmente, el estudio muestra la mortalidad debida a factores modificables que se clasifican principalmente en las IHD, y la consiguiente necesidad de que el sistema de salud español actúe sobre ellas