La problemática relación entre estadística y ostrácodos marinos

This paper analyses the possibilities of the statistical techniques in the treatment of marine ostracod populations, with the indication of the commonest problems observed in the different stages (sampling, laboratory procedures, recognition of the biocoenosis). Some additional chapters indicate the most important limitations for the application of bivariate or multivariate techniques. In both cases, results can be considered as a graphic development of the initial database and never as the main support of the conclusions.Junta de AndalucíaUniversidad de Huelv

A way of preserving Caenorhabditis elegans

Aquaculture is a "breeding" of recent implantation that needs many improvement processes. One of the problems that arise is the feeding of fish larvae, which need live food. It has been proven that these fish larvae can be fed from the Caenorhabiditis elegans nematode, which is easy to grow. In order to carry out the industrial application it is necessary to develop a method in which the nematodes are kept as long as possible, thus ensuring their survival. All this to be able to transport them efficiently. (Brüggemann, 2012).One of these methods can be dehydration from salts. In C. elegans the larval stage known as dauer survive desiccation after preconditioning, which consist in a reduction of humidity for several hours (Erkut et al. 2011, Erkut et al. 2013, Honnens et al.2013). It has also been shown that C. elegans can uptake trehalose from the medium  increasing resistance to stress. In addition to the trehalose another method to improve the adaptation to stress is that C.elegans is in the larval Dauer state. Another method of preservation that is used is the freezing of these nematodes (WormBook.org).The keys to a successful freeze are using animals at the correct stage of development, the addition of glycerol to the freezing media, and a gradual cooling to -80°C. Freshly starved young larvae (L1-L2 stage) survive freezing best. A 15% final volume of glycerol in the freezing solution is used. Finally the C.elegans are defrosted at room temperature.To observe the results of the dehydration method, we must hydrate the nematodes with M9 solution and see what their survival rate is. For now with this method the results are not totally satisfactory since the nematodes hold very little time in dry state. If you want to observe the results of the survival rate of thawed worms, you have to transfer them to a nutritious medium at a temperature of 20ºC and after 24 hours you count the survival rate of these worms. The results of the thawing is around 10% after a 4 month period.Although the performance of both experiments are not totally satisfactory at the moment, we will try to improve the methodology used to obtain higher survival rates in a longer time in a preserved state. The objective of this work is to find the method and the most effective way to develop the preservation method that obtains the best survival rate and for the longest time

El papel de la microbiota en el tratamiento contra el cáncer

Motivation: Cisplatin (CP) or cis-diamminedichloridoplatinum(II) (CDDP) is a widely used chemotherapeutic agent for various solid tumors. DNA is the critical target for cisplatin by inhibiting DNA synthesis and inducing celular apoptosis (Crone, 2015). However, its effectiveness in each individual is greatly different. Understanding the causes of this disparity may contribute to the development of personalize treatments. Therefore, patients will get more effective results. One of those causes may be the intestinal microbiota composition. The relationship between the host and the commensal microbiota regulates physiological functions which could have a link with tumor progression (Perez-Chanona, 2016). In this study we expect to find a direct relationship between a particular specie of bacteria given as supply and the effectiveness of cisplatin in the nematode C. elegans. This information will allow to anticipate therapy efficacy based on microbiota composition of every patient. Moreover, microbiota may be modified to achieve the expected results. To find out how this drug affects C. elegans, brood size of each individual was analyzed after being treated with it. Offspring is measured in order to quantify DNA damage during gametic production. A decrease in offspring after cisplatin treatment indicates positive drug function (Crone, 2015).Methods: For each experiment, wild type (N2) strain of C. elegans eggs were incubated in NGM plates seeded with a mixture of E. coli (OP50) (90%) and the chosen intestinal bacteria (10%). After 72 hours maintained at 16ºC, L4 nematodes (last larval stage previous to fertile adult stage) were exposed to cisplatin (150 µg/ml, dissolved in M9 buffer including 0.01% Tween20) for 2 hours. Afterwards, worms were washed three times in M9 buffer. Ten worms from each treatment were selected to be placed again in the previous mixture of bacteria for 24 hours. The day after, each one was moved to a new and individual NGM plate containing only OP50 as supply. The three following days brood size was scored for every worm. Results: So far, a decrease in offspring of 26% has been achieved when the worm is seeded with OP50 and exposed to cisplatin (150 µg/ml). This decrease in brood-size allows the detection of reduction and also improvement of the cisplatin effect.Conclusions: Based on the previous data, the effect of different bacteria species will be evaluated

Analysis of the presence of sustainability in Higher Education Degrees of the Spanish university system

This paper analyzes the extent to which sustainability is present in the curricula of the 16 Education Degree programs belonging to the EDINSOST project: 6 Early Childhood Education Degrees, 7 Primary Education Degrees, 2 Pedagogy Degrees and 1 Social Education Degree. The results obtained suggest that sustainability is present in all Degrees, but not uniformly so. A great disparity is observed in the number of subjects that develop sustainability, with an average of 22.63 subjects per Degree. The competency most present is the ‘ Application of ethical principles related to the values of sustainability in personal and professional behaviors, ’ while the least present is ‘ Sustainable use of resources and prevention of negative impacts on the natural and social environment. ’Sustainability is not developed uniformly in the different universities either. Three universities (UAM, UCA and UIC) develop sustainability competencies at 100%, while others such as the USAL do so at only 50

Industrial use of Caenorhabditis elegans in aquaculture

Motivation: Larvae of most aquatic animal species with commercial interest need live food. To date, Artemia sp. is the live food most employed in aquaculture. Although widely use it, Artemia presents several serious problems. Its price is expensive and very variable, coupled with important nutritional deficiencies. The search of alternative food is becoming important in the last years. In this work, the model organism Caenorhabiditis  elegans  is proposed as substitute or complementation to Artemia in larviculture. The regular medium for growth C. elegans is based in Escherichia coli, which is not admitted in aquaculture industry. In order to overcome this problem we are developing a new medium to cultivate C. elegans.Methods: C. elegans was growth in liquid medium at 20ºC with agitation of 120 rpm/min. To optimize nematode growth for industrial proposes different microorganisms were tested (yeast, E.coli, Pseudomonas fluorescens and Bacillus subtilis  among others).Salt adaptation of C. elegans was carried out transferring 10 L4 to NGM plates with a progressive increase of salt concentration. When nematodes survived in salt concentration similar to salt in sea water nematodes were transferred to liquid medium.Cold adaptation was performed by subjecting nematodes plates at 4 ° C for different periods of time. After these periods nematodes are returned to 20° C and survival is analyzed. Following cold adaptation optimization in plate, cold adaptation was tested in liquid medium.Results: : Medium based in P.fluorescens reaches a production up to 100.000 nematodes/ml similar to the regular medium based on E. coli. B. subtilis and yeast reaches a lower production 40.000 nematodes/ml  and 5.000 nematodes/ml respectively. Salt adaptation of nematodes growth in E.coli was achieved successfully as well cold adaptation.Conclusions: We have obtained different protocols to growth C. elegans that can be attractive to the aquaculture industry

Bacteriophages as an Up-and-Coming Alternative to the Use of Sulfur Dioxide in Winemaking

Certain acetic and lactic acid bacteria are major causes of quality defects in musts and wines, giving rise to defects such as a "vinegary," "sharp, like nail polish-remover" taste or preventing alcoholic and/or malolactic fermentation. Sulfur dioxide is the major tool currently used in the control of these bacteria in wine. The aim of this work was to isolate bacteriophages from musts and wine of different grape varieties that were able to eliminate lactic and acetic acid bacteria spoilages at the laboratory scale. Musts obtained from grape-berries of Vitis vinifera cv. Chardonnay and Moscatel and a red wine made with V. vinifera cv. Tintilla de Rota were used to isolate bacteriophages. Bacteriophages were obtained from each of the musts and the wine and belonged to the order Caudovirals and the family Tectivirals. They were isolated by classical virology methods and identified by electron microscopy. The host bacteria used in the study were lactic acid bacteria of the species Lactobacillus hilgardii, Lactobacillus plantarum, and Oenococcus oeni and the acetic bacteria Acetobacter aceti. A comparative study was performed by adding phage titrations and SO2 to musts and wines, which had been previously inoculated with bacteria, to study the effectiveness of bacteriophages against bacteria. The comparative study showed that some bacteriophages were as effective as sulfur dioxide at low concentration

Analyzing the Behavior of Cannabis Users during the COVID-19 Confinement in Spain

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our lives is unquestionable, including in the area of substance consumption. This study aimed to evaluate the changes in the pattern of cannabis use during the Spanish COVID-19 lockdown and confinement, and to analyze the variations in the reported motives for cannabis use and withdrawal symptoms. A cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted between April and May 2020, using an instrument that included two time points. Time 1 collected retrospective information on the participants’ habits (N = 89; 73% male; mean age = 29.01) prior to confinement and Time 2 collected the same information during the confinement. Sociodemographic data were collected, as well as the frequency of substance use, cannabis use patterns, sources of cannabis, perceived availability of drugs and cannabis price, and the Marijuana Motives Measure questionnaire and the Cannabis Withdrawal Scale were used. Results showed a decrease in both cannabis use and consumption due to enhancement and social motives. All reported sources of cannabis experienced a reduction except for the Internet, which experienced a significant increase. There was a positive correlation between withdrawal symptoms and coping motives before and during the lockdown. These findings will allow professionals to better develop both prevention and intervention strategies

New methods of mass cultivation of nematodes

Motivation:  Caenorhabditis elegans is a model organism used in biomedical research whose genome is completely sequenced, moreover, the physiology and development is well known [1]. C. elegans are usually fed with a bacterial-based medium [2].  Thanks to its rapid development by self-fertilization and its ability to be cultivated in both solid and liquid medium, C. elegans can be growth using liquid fermenters.  We want to explore new methods of massive production to use this nematode in different industrial processes.  Methods: In the laboratory, C. elegans is fed with E. coli OP50 on plate and with E. coli X1666 in liquid culture [2]. We have optimized the culture of nematodes with the bacterial strain PV333 in NGM plates. Then, they were transferred to liquid culture with S-Medium with 3% PV333. Finally, for the nematodes to be used in certain processes where high saline concentrations are required, we used an adapted strain to salt in liquid cultures with several NaCl concentrations (5 gr/L, 20 gr/L and 35gr/L).Results: Nematodes fed on PV333 showed a faster development compared to the E. coli control strain in both plate and liquid. The adaptation to salt of the nematodes was satisfactory up to the concentration of 20 gr/L and it is expected to achieve a good growth of the population at the concentration 35 gr/L NaCl. We expect to have a better nematode production yield using PV333 in liquid fermenters than using regular E. coli.Conclusions: Strain PV333 is a good substrate to produce nematodes massively and fast. In addition, the used of high concentration of salt will allow C. elegans to survive adverse conditions and to be used in diverse industrial procedures

Non-Invasive Forehead Segmentation in Thermographic Imaging

The temperature of the forehead is known to be highly correlated with the internal body temperature. This area is widely used in thermal comfort systems, lie-detection systems, etc. However, there is a lack of tools to achieve the segmentation of the forehead using thermographic images and non-intrusive methods. In fact, this is usually segmented manually. This work proposes a simple and novel method to segment the forehead region and to extract the average temperature from this area solving this lack of non-user interaction tools. Our method is invariant to the position of the face, and other different morphologies even with the presence of external objects. The results provide an accuracy of 90% compared to the manual segmentation using the coefficient of Jaccard as a metric of similitude. Moreover, due to the simplicity of the proposed method, it can work with real-time constraints at 83 frames per second in embedded systems with low computational resources. Finally, a new dataset of thermal face images is presented, which includes some features which are difficult to find in other sets, such as glasses, beards, moustaches, breathing masks, and different neck rotations and flexions