Executive function and intelectual disabilities: assesment and relevance.

Este trabajo es una revisión teórica de los últimos instrumentos utilizados en la evaluación de las funciones ejecutivas (FE) en la discapacidad intelectual (DI). A pesar de la importancia cada vez mayor que se está concediendo a las FE en el perfil cognitivo de las personas con DI, son todavía pocos los trabajos que han abordado el estudio de las funciones ejecutivas en esta población y muy escasas las pruebas disponibles para una evaluación estandarizada. Por tanto, el objetivo de este trabajo es poner a disposición de los profesionales e investigadores en el campo de la Psicología y de la Educación una serie de instrumentos que pueden ser utilizados para la evaluación de las FE en la discapacidad intelectual.In this work, a theoretical review about the last tools used to assessment the executive functioning (EF) in people with intellectual disability (ID) is presented. Despite the growing importance that the research is giving to the executive function in the cognitive profile of people with ID, there are few studies about the executive function in this population and there are few standardized available tests. Therefore, the aim of this work is to make available a set of instruments to assessment the EF in the ID that could be used by psychologists and educators.peerReviewe

The Impact of Enforcement Capabilities on the Effectiveness of Public Assessment on Occupational Safety

número del art. 6426(1) Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of enforcement capabilities on the efficacy of two public interventions to improve occupational safety in olive mills. (2) Method: The difference in efficacy was evaluated by comparing the risks detected in two groups in an initial assessment (with visits in the 2006–2008 period) to the risks detected in a later assessment, either after an intervention by Authorized Technicians with enforcement capabilities or after an intervention by Technical Advisors without enforcement capabilities (2011–2013). The assessments identified risks in the companies, according to a specific risk map for olive oil mill enterprises. (3) Results: Statistically significant differences were observed in the comparison of the risk reductions of the two groups, with regard to the initial assessment. The greatest reductions in risk were found in the companies that received interventions by Authorized Technicians with enforcement capabilities, in the sections of individual protection equipment and the storage of dangerous products. (4) Conclusion: Interventions by Authorized Technicians with enforcement capabilities are more effective than interventions by Technical Advisors without enforcement capabilities

Wetland Loss by Erosion in Odiel Marshes (SW Spain)

Wetland loss in many estuaries around the world, has been attributed mainly to undermining and collapse of channel banks. This study aims to quantify bank erosion and vertical erosion/accretion rates on intertidal sediments in the Odiel tidal marshes (SW Spain). Bi-monthly erosion/accretion measurements were taken on eight channels over a four year period, using markers (iron stakes) located on intertidal areas and on eroding banks. The intensity of erosion divides the Odiel marshes into two zones. The northern zone has low erosion rates (horizontal erosion c. -20 cm year-1 and vertical erosion / accretion between 0 and -1 cm year-1), and coincides with low levels of human activities. The southern zone has higher erosion rates (horizontal erosion c. -25 cm year-1 and vertical erosion / accretion between 0 and -5 cm year-1) and exhibits higher levels of anthropogenic pressure. The highest horizontal and vertical erosion rates (c. -80 cm year-1) were recorded on navigation channels. Horizontal and vertical erosion showed a positive linear relationship (r2 = 0.66; P< 0.01), indicating that sediments mobilized by bank erosion are not deposited on adjacent intertidal areas. Erosion led to mature marsh habitat loss of c. 17000 m2 year-1 and a sediment mobilization of c. 16500 m3 year-1

Advanced monitoring of rail breakage in double-track railway lines by means of PCA techniques

This work describes a classifier designed to identify rail breakages in double-track railway lines, completing the electronic equipment carried out by authors. The main objective of this proposal is to guarantee the integrity of tracks before the railway traffic starts working. In addition, it facilitates maintenance tasks providing information about possible breakages. The detection of breakages is based on the analysis of eight currents provided by the electronic equipment, one per rail, at the ends of the section (emitting and receiving nodes). The imbalance that occurs among the value of these currents implies that there is at least a breakage in the track section under analysis. This analysis is conducted according to three phases. The first one identifies whether there is a breakage, and, in that case, the damaged track is identified. The second phase provides information about which rail is broken (internal, external or both of them) in the previously identified track. Finally, if there is only one breakage, the third phase estimates its most likely zone along the track section. This situation is considered as a classification problem, and solved by means of the Principal Component Analysis technique. This means that a significant number of measurements is required for every breakage pattern (types of breakages) to be considered. Due to the difficulty of having real data, the proposal has been validated using an 8km-long double-track hardware simulator specially designed by the authors, with specific localizations for breakages

Effect of pH on the production of hydrolytic enzymes of industrial interest by Bacillus licheniformis using sewage sludge as a low-cost culture médium

Management of sewage sludge has become a topic of increasing importance. This is because the treatment and final destination of these wastes are not growing at the same rate at which generated what is necessary to add the limited storage capacity of wastewater treatment plants or waste transfer centers. Current policies of different governments aims, among others, promote proecological management of sewage sludge, replacing traditional methods by new methods that lead to their stabilization and safe recycling. These methods can lead to the recovery of valuable raw materials from potentially dangerous others in order to permit their use in agriculture, industry or energy production. Moreover, exists a great enzyme market, mainly those with hydrolytic activities such as proteases, lipases or cellulases. Although its use has many advantages, the competitiveness of the enzymes compared with chemicals is limited by its high production costs. The use of a less expensive culture media and the stimulation of the production of these enzymes can significantly reduce production costs. Therefore, the use of tertiary materials as alternative substrates, available in large quantities and at lower cost, is an interesting option. In this work we have studied the effect of pH on the fermentation of sewage sludge by Bacillus licheniformis, a hydrolytic enzymes producer microorganism, in order to obtain several products for specific agronomic applications

OPTIMIZACIÓN ESTADÍSTICA DEL RENDIMIENTO TÉRMICO DE UN COLECTOR SOLAR DE PLACA PLANA UTILIZANDO DISEÑO DE EXPERIMENTOS CON UN ENFOQUE DE TAGUCHI

ResumenEn el presente trabajo se hace uso de los arreglos ortogonales propuestos por Taguchi para maximizar el rendimiento térmico de un colector solar de placa plana. En el proceso de optimización son considerados cuatro factores, los cuales son: ángulo de inclinación del colector, espaciamiento entre la placa absorbedora y la cubierta, espesor del aislamiento en la parte inferior del colector y el material del aislamiento en la parte inferior del colector. La metodología se aplica al diseño térmico de un colector solar de placa plana tomado de la literatura abierta, los resultados muestran que el ángulo de inclinación del colector, el espesor del aislamiento en la parte inferior del colector y el material del aislamiento en la parte inferior del colector son estadísticamente significativos para el cálculo del rendimiento térmico del colector y que a diferencia de los diseños de colectores encontrados en la literatura abierta debe tomarse en cuenta la transferencia de calor que se genera a través del aislante colocado en la parte inferior del colector, mientras que el espaciamiento entre la placa absorbedora y la cubierta no resulta ser significativa estadísticamente. Se obtiene un aumento del 7% en el rendimiento térmico del colector con respecto al diseño tomado de la literatura abierta.Palabra(s) Clave(s): ANOVA, Arreglos Ortogonales de Taguchi, Colector de Energía Solar, Optimización, Simulación. AbstractThis work makes use of orthogonal arrays proposed by Taguchi to maximize the thermal performance of a flat plate solar collector. On the process optimization are taken into account four control factors, which are: the collector tilt, spacing between the absorber plate and the cover, back insulation thickness and the material type of back insulation. The methodology is applied to a problem of thermal design of a flat plate solar collector taken from the open literature, the results show that the collector tilt, back insulation thickness and material type of back insulation are statistically significant for the calculus of the thermal performance of the collector, and that unlike of the designs of collectors found in the open literature, the heat transfer through of the back insulation must taken into account, while the spacing between the absorber plate and the cover is not statistically significant. A 7% increase in the thermal performance of the flat plate solar collector is obtained with respect to the design taken from the open literature.Keywords: ANOVA, Flat Plate Solar Collector, Optimization, Simulation, Taguchi´s Orthogonal Arrays

Involvement of stanniocalcins in the deregulation of glycaemia in obese mice and type 2 diabetic patients

Las estanniocalcinas se expresan en el tejido del páncreas, y se sugirió una correlación directa entre la insulina circulante y las concentraciones de STC2 en el ser humano. Aquí, mostramos una correlación significativa entre STC1 y tanto la glucemia como la hemoglobina glicosilada entre los pacientes con DM2, mientras que los pacientes con DM2 que presentan los mayores valores de hemoglobina glicosilada exhibieron la menor expresión de STC2. Sin embargo, el tratamiento de los pacientes con fármacos antiglicémicos no modifica significativamente la expresión de ambas STC. Por otra parte, los ratones STC2-/- que mostraron sobrepeso neonatal y adulto presentaron además una glucemia desregulada cuando fueron alimentados con una dieta hipercalórica (pellet de cría, BP). Esta alteración es más evidente en las primeras etapas de la vida animal. La glucemia desregulada en estos ratones se confirmó mediante una prueba oral de glucosa. Además, los ratones STC2-/- presentan un aumento del tamaño del páncreas; así, el análisis histológico revela que los ratones WT responden a la dieta BP aumentando el tamaño de los islotes pancreáticos a través de la inducción de la división celular, y los ratones STC2-/- carecen de este mecanismo compensatorio. Contrariamente, los ratones alimentados con STC2-/- muestran un mayor número de islotes pero de tamaño similar a los alimentados con el pellet regular. El análisis histopatológico demuestra la alteración de la estructura de los tejidos y las infiltraciones de eritrocitos en los ratones STC2-/-, posiblemente debido al estrés evocado por la dieta BP. Por último, se observó una mayor inmunotinción de glucagón en el islote de los ratones STC2-/-, y el ensayo ELISA de glucagón confirmó el aumento del glucagón circulante. En resumen, presentamos pruebas del papel de los STC, principalmente el STC2, como posible marcador temprano durante el desarrollo de la diabetes mellitus.Stanniocalcins are expressed in the pancreas tissue, and it was suggested a direct correlation between circulating insulin and STC2 concentrations in human. Here, we show a significant correlation between STC1 and both glycaemia and glycosylated haemoglobin among DM2 patients, while DM2 patients who present the greatest glycosylated haemoglobin values exhibited the lowest STC2 expression. However, treatment of patients with antiglycaemic drugs does not significantly modify the expression of both STCs. On the other hand, STC2-/- mice that exhibited neonatal and adult overweight further presented deregulated glycaemia when they were feed with a hypercaloric diet (breeding pellet, BP). This alteration is more evident at the early stages of the animal life. Deregulated glycaemia in these mice was confirmed using glucose oral test. In addition, STC2-/- mice present enhanced pancreas size; thus, the histological analysis reveals that WT mice respond to BP diet by increasing the size of the pancreatic islets through inducing cell division, and STC2-/- mice lack this compensatory mechanism. Contrary, BP fed STC2-/- mice show enhanced number of islets but of similar size than those fed with regular pellet. Histopathological analysis demonstrates tissue structure disruption and erythrocytes infiltrations in STC2-/- mice, possibly due to the stress evoked by the BP diet. Finally, enhanced glucagon immunostaining was observed in the islet of STC2-/- mice, and the glucagon ELISA assay confirmed the increase in the circulating glucagon. Summarizing, we present evidence of the role of STCs, mainly STC2, as a possible early marker during development of diabetes mellitus.• Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Becas 2013‐45564C2‐1‐P, BFU‐2016‐74932‐C2‐1‐P • Programa Juan de la Cierva. Becas IJCI‐2015‐25665, JC‐2012‐ 2934 • Junta de Extremadura. Beca PRIIB16046peerReviewe

Association between maltreatment and polydrug use among adolescents.

Different studies have related sexual and physical abuse during childhood and adolescence to the development of substance abuse disorders. Nevertheless, we are not aware of the role that other more common maltreatment types, such as neglect, will play among the most risky pattern of consumption: the polydrug use. A clinical sample of 655 adolescents, divided into two groups: polydrug users and non-polydrug users, were assessed on their pattern of drug consumption, history of childhood maltreatment, current psychopathology and their family history of alcoholism. Polydrug users had a greater prevalence of all types of maltreatment, although the most associated to this group were sexual abuse and emotional neglect. Other relevant variables to adolescent consumption were: the diagnosis of depressive disorder, the presence of anxiety traits and the family history of alcohol dependence. Polydrug users have higher risks of having had problems during infancy and adolescence, such as maltreatment and other psychopathological conditions, with the addition of family history of alcoholism. Accordingly, practitioners should take into account that those variables may influence polydrug abuse because it is the most risky pattern for subsequent dependence of substances, and they should always be considered during treatment.This research was funded by the “Plan Nacional Sobre Drogas” from the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality (Spain).Peer reviewe

Frequency, risk factors, and outcomes of hospital readmissions of COVID-19 patients

To determine the proportion of patients with COVID-19 who were readmitted to the hospital and the most common causes and the factors associated with readmission. Multicenter nationwide cohort study in Spain. Patients included in the study were admitted to 147 hospitals from March 1 to April 30, 2020. Readmission was defined as a new hospital admission during the 30 days after discharge. Emergency department visits after discharge were not considered readmission. During the study period 8392 patients were admitted to hospitals participating in the SEMI-COVID-19 network. 298 patients (4.2%) out of 7137 patients were readmitted after being discharged. 1541 (17.7%) died during the index admission and 35 died during hospital readmission (11.7%, p = 0.007). The median time from discharge to readmission was 7 days (IQR 3-15 days). The most frequent causes of hospital readmission were worsening of previous pneumonia (54%), bacterial infection (13%), venous thromboembolism (5%), and heart failure (5%). Age [odds ratio (OR): 1.02; 95% confident interval (95% CI): 1.01-1.03], age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index score (OR: 1.13; 95% CI: 1.06-1.21), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (OR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.26-2.69), asthma (OR: 1.52; 95% CI: 1.04-2.22), hemoglobin level at admission (OR: 0.92; 95% CI: 0.86-0.99), ground-glass opacification at admission (OR: 0.86; 95% CI:0.76-0.98) and glucocorticoid treatment (OR: 1.29; 95% CI: 1.00-1.66) were independently associated with hospital readmission. The rate of readmission after hospital discharge for COVID-19 was low. Advanced age and comorbidity were associated with increased risk of readmission

Generación de herramientas de aprendizaje médico, con sistemas de visión virtual híbrida estereoscópica

Memoria ID-0117. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2017-2018