Resilience of Long-lived Mediterranean Gorgonians in a Changing World: Insights from Life History Theory and Quantitative Ecology

[eng] Temperate benthic communities face cumulative impacts from multiple stressors acting both at local and global scales. Understanding how local management and ocean warming affect the dynamics and resilience of dominant habitat-forming species is central to marine conservation. In this thesis, we combined long-term demographic surveys and large-scale distribution datasets with innovative population and spatial modeling approaches, and meta-analyses to unravel the causes and consequences of extreme life-histories. The final goal was to understand resilience patterns and mechanisms, and to assess the effectiveness of widely used conservation tools such as fishing regulations, marine protected areas (MPAs), and active restoration. A comparative analysis across marine sessile species revealed strong linkages between depth occurrence, longevity and demographic stability. These results demonstrated a fundamental role of environmental gradients in shaping the evolution of life-history strategies in the ocean and suggest that deep-sea benthic communities tend to be dominated by long-lived species that are very vulnerable to external sources of mortality. In addition, we demonstrate that life-history strategies play a role in important conservation issues such as recovery processes. For instance, recovery times after fishing or restoration actions for long-lived species can take several decades. Thus, accounting for the temporal dimension and life-history tradeoffs in conservation efforts is essential to avoid potential long-lasting impacts and enhance the recovery of damaged ecosystems. Focusing on the Mediterranean red coral Corallium rubrum, an overharvested precious coral emblematic of coralligenous assemblages, we revealed an extremely slow life-history strategy characterized by low reproduction success, high natural survival, and extended longevity. These traits drive a general pattern of slow population dynamics and suggest low resilience to human-driven stressors. We then show that local and global stressors such as overfishing and warming have strong impacts on different demographic processes of red coral populations. Harvesting causes dramatic decreases in total biomass and strong shifts in size-class distribution towards populations dominated by small colonies. More broadly, MPAs strongly enhance structural complexity of red coral populations but, contrary to prior expectations, have little effect on their long-term viability and associated extinction risk. Population recovery after harvesting is a very slow process that can take decades. Interestingly, recovery is not driven by sexual reproduction but by the capacity of harvested colonies to survive and regrow new branches. This recovery mechanism may explain the persistence of this historically overexploited long-lived coral. Unfortunately, novel impacts associated to climate change threat shallow red coral populations. Recurrent warming-driven mass mortality events had detrimental effects on affected populations, causing long-term declines and potential local extinction. While MPAs have been proposed to enhance the resilience of marine ecosystems to climate change, our simulations suggested that MPAs only have a weak buffering effect to climatic impacts. On the other hand, spatial analyses revealed that future climate change may cause extensive impacts on shallow populations of the red coral and the red gorgonian Paramuricea clavata (another emblematic species of coralligenous assemblages with an important structural role) across the Mediterranean Sea. Importantly, we found that the extent and severity of warming impacts is strongly dependent on depth and the global emissions scenarios. Altogether, our results demonstrate a high vulnerability and low demographic resilience of shallow red coral populations to climate change. The results presented in this thesis suggest that, only by simultaneously acting at both local and global scales, we can we ensure the persistence and enhance the structural role of the long-lived Mediterranean red coral. Finally, this thesis also shows the potential of combining long-term large-scale field data, quantitative tools, and principles of life-history theory to provide new perspectives to advance marine conservation in a changing ocean

Valoració objectiva de l’activitat física en sessions d’exercici físic d’un programa multidisciplinari per al tractament de l’obesitat infantil

Antecedents. La inclusió d’exercici físic supervisat en les intervencions per al tractament de l’obesitat infantil és un dels factors que pot determinar la seva eficàcia. No obstant, malgrat que les sessions hagin estat planificades segons les recomanacions, la resposta real dels nens/nenes no sempre ha estat quantificada. La finalitat del treball va ser analitzar el grau de moviment i estimar la despesa energètica durant les sessions d’exercici físic d’una intervenció per al tractament de l’obesitat infantil. Mètode. Hi van participar 41 nens/nenes de 8 a 12 anys, obesos i poc actius, en els quals es va mesurar, mitjançant acceleròmetres, el grau de moviment global i el temps dedicat a diferents nivells d’intensitat d’esforç (sedentària, lleugera, moderada-vigorosa) i el patró de les conductes sedentàries i d’activitat física durant les sessions d’exercici físic de la intervenció. Resultats. Les sessions de 60 minuts de durada es caracteritzen per períodes curts de moderada-vigorosa intensitat interromputs per períodes curts de menor intensitat de moviment. Els participants van dedicar un 58,3% del temps a activitats de moderada-vigorosa intensitat, un 30% a activitats de lleugera intensitat i tan sols un 11.8% del temps a conductes sedentàries. Per al conjunt de les sessions, i en particular a les de futbol, la despesa energètica dels nens va ser superior a la de les nenes. Conclusions. El programa d’intervenció dóna l’oportunitat d’augmentar els minuts setmanals dedicats a activitat física de moderada i vigorosa intensitat i d’incrementar la despesa energètica.Background. The inclusion of supervised physical exercise in interventions for the management of childhood obesity is one of the factors that can determine their efficacy. However, even though physical exercise sessions are planned according to existing guidelines, the children’s actual response has not always been quantified. The aim of this study was to analyse the level of movement and estimate energy expenditure during the supervised physical exercise sessions of an intervention for the treatment of childhood obesity. Method. Forty-one 8-to-12-year-old low active and obese children participated in the study. The overall physical activity, the time spent in different levels of exertion (sedentary, light intensity (LPA) and moderateto-vigorous intensity (MVPA) physical activity) and the pattern of sedentary and physical activity behaviour during the supervised physical exercise sessions were objectively assessed using Actigraph accelerometers. Results. The 60-minutes sessions were characterised by short bouts of MVPA interspersed by short bouts of LPA. Participants spent 58.3% of the duration of the session in MVPA, 30% in LPA and only 11.8% in sedentary behaviour. For all the sessions, and in particular for the football ones, energy expenditure was greater in boys than girls. Conclusions. Multidisciplinary intervention offers the opportunity to increase the weekly time devoted to moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and to raise energy expenditure

Distribució de Sichel i riquesa de vocabulari : aplicació al Tirant lo Blanc

L'objectiu principal del nostre projecte és detectar si realment existeix un canvi en la diversitat del vocabulari en el Tirant lo Blanc a partir de l'estimació dels parametres d'una distribució que ajusti l'ús del vocabulario Aixó ho farem a partir d'un inventari de totes les paraules que apareixen en el llibre i del nombre d'ocurrencies de cadascuna d'elles

Estudi dels cargols en estat d'hivernació

En aquest projecte es comparen set tipus de cargols de la mateixa especie peró de procedencia diferent en termes de la seva supervivència, del seu pes i del preu. Dos dels tipus de cargols provenen de la granja CAL JEP, S.L., i els altres tipus són de bosc. L'objectiu final és determinar quins són els més interessants per l'empresa BAGES CARGOL, S.L., dedicada a la conserva i venda de cargols pel consum. El projecte comença dissenyant i fent un experiment en el que s'han recollit dades durant 24 setmanes. En total tenim una mostra de 10.500 cargols, 1.500 per cada tipus. En aquest experiment tots els cargols estan hivernant i les condicions ambientals són sempre les mateixes per tots. L'objectiu és trobar el millor tipus de cargol per aquestes condicions, entenent que com menys es morin i menys pes perdin, millors són els cargols. A més a més, es vol determinar el preu de compra mínim pel qual no hi hagi pèrdues, aquest objectiu és mteressant pel l'empresa BAGES CARGOL, S.L. Les dades s'han anat recollint setmanalment i per tant podem estudiar l'evolució de la mortalitat, del pes i del preu per cada tipus de cargol. Un altre objectiu interessant per l'empresa CAL JEP, S.L. que s'ha fet en aquest projecte és trobar les possibles diferencies entre els seus cargols de granja i la resta de tipus

Práctica educativa y adquisición de la lengua de la escuela

Este texto se presentó como comunicación al II Congreso Internacional de Etnografía y Educación: Migraciones y Ciudadanías. Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, 5-8 Septiembre 2008.La presencia de alumnado extranjero en las aulas de Cataluña aumenta en número cada año. Ante esta realidad -que provoca nuevos retos en relación a la igualdad de oportunidades y la cohesión social- se han desarrollado actuaciones diversas desde el Departamento de Educación de la Generalitat de Cataluña: el plan de acogida para la infancia extranjera y sus familias centrado en el período de matriculación, el apoyo específico a la escolarización de los niños y niñas extranjeros, así como diversas actuaciones encaminadas al aprendizaje de la lengua catalana para los alumnos que se incorporan tardíamente a nuestro sistema educativo. Como es bien sabido, a pesar de los enormes esfuerzos realizados desde el Programa LIC, una buena parte de la infancia y la adolescencia extranjera escolarizada en nuestro país sigue teniendo serias dificultades para desarrollar un buen conocimiento de las dos lenguas oficiales de Cataluña al finalizar la enseñanza obligatoria (Areny i Vial, 2005; Ferrer, Ferrer i Castel, 2006; Fullana, Besalú i Vilà, 2003; Maruny i Molina, 2000; Siguan, 1998; Vila, 2005; Vila i Siqués, 2006; Vila, Siqués i Roig, 2006). En otras palabras, estos alumnos no desarrollan las habilidades lingüísticas y cognitivas necesarias para superar con éxito las demandas implicadas en las actividades de enseñanza y aprendizaje escolares. En este contexto, creemos indispensable desarrollar trabajos que permitan identificar las prácticas educativas que promueven el conocimiento de la lengua de la escuela y el desarrollo de las competencias básicas de todo el alumnado, independientemente de su lengua familiar y del momento de incorporación al sistema educativo catalán. Concretamente, pensamos que esta "nueva" realidad requiere nuevas formas de actuar en las aulas, tanto desde el punto de vista de la organización escolar como de la práctica educativa (Schecter i Cummins, 2003; Vila, Siqués i Roig, 2006). El trabajo que presentamos pretende establecer e implamentar criterios respecto la organización escolar y la práctica educativa para mejorar las competencias básicas del alumnado extranjero que participa en las aulas de Cataluña con una gran diversidad respecto el conocimiento de la lengua de la escuela. En concreto, buscamos profundizar y localizar los factores y elementos relevantes para la organización escolar y la práctica educativa en escuelas plurilingües con estas características

Distribució de Sichel i riquesa de vocabulari : aplicació al Tirant lo Blanc

L'objectiu principal del nostre projecte és detectar si realment existeix un canvi en la diversitat del vocabulari en el Tirant lo Blanc a partir de l'estimació dels parametres d'una distribució que ajusti l'ús del vocabulario Aixó ho farem a partir d'un inventari de totes les paraules que apareixen en el llibre i del nombre d'ocurrencies de cadascuna d'elles

Fumarate and nitrate reduction (FNR) dependent activation of the Escherichia coli anaerobic ribonucleotide reductase nrdDG promoter

The nrdDG promoter regulates transcriptional expression of the anaerobic ribonucleotide reductase of Escherichia coli, an essential enzyme required to supply the building blocks for DNA synthesis. In this work, binding of the pleiotropic FNR (fumarate and nitrate reduction) transcriptional regulator to the nrdDG promoter region and the effects of binding on transcription were investigated. Gel retardation analysis with purified FNR* demonstrated FNR interaction at two FNR sites, termed FNR-2 and FNR-1, while studies with altered FNR boxes indicated that the upstream FNR-2 site was essential for anaerobic activation of the nrdDG promoter. Although the FNR-1 site was not absolutely required, it allowed maximal expression of this promoter. These results suggest that the two sites have an additive effect in coordinating nrdDG expression in response to shifting oxygen concentrations

Marked ventricular repolarization abnormalities in highly trained athletes’ electrocardiograms: clinical and prognostic implications

AbstractOBJECTIVEWe sought to study the functional, clinical and prognostic implications of marked repolarization abnormalities (MRA) sometimes seen in athletes’ electrocardiograms (ECGs).BACKGROUNDThe clinical meaning of ECG MRA in athletes is unknown. No relationship has been drawn between either training intensity or any particular type of sport and MRA. Athletes are usually symptom free and do not show any decrease in their physical performance. It is as yet unclear whether MRA may have a negative effect on the performance of such athletes in competitive sports.METHODSWe studied 26 athletes with MRA (negative T waves ≥2 mm in three or more ECG leads at rest). No athletes presented clinical symptoms of cardiac disease or decrease in their physical performance. Clinical and physical examinations, ECG at rest, exercise test and echocardiographic and antimyosin studies were performed in all athletes. Rest/exercise myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography studies were performed in 17 athletes. The follow-up ranged from 4 to 20 years (mean 6.7 years).RESULTSFour athletes were excluded due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Echocardiographic studies showed right and left normal ventricular dimensions for highly conditioned athletes. In the exercise test, heart rate was 166 ± 12.4 beats/min, and exercise tolerance was 15.2 ± 2.7 metabolic equivalents of the task. All athletes had ECG at rest simulating myocardial ischemia or “pseudoischemia” with a tendency to normalize during exercise. Myocardial perfusion studies were normal in the studied athletes. Antimyosin studies showed mild and diffuse myocardial radiotracer uptake in 15 athletes (68%). No adverse clinical events were observed in the follow-up.CONCLUSIONSThese results suggest that MRA have no clinical or pathological implications in athletes and should, therefore, not preclude physical training or participation in sporting events

Reduction of pharmaceutical expenditure by a drug appropriateness intervention in polymedicated elderly subjects in Catalonia

To assess the monetary savings resulting from a pharmacist intervention on the appropriateness of prescribed drugs in community-dwelling polymedicated (≥8 drugs) elderly people (≥70 years). (...