Species richness patterns and functional traits of the bat fauna of arid southern Africa

The bat fauna of arid regions is still poorly studied mostly due to a lack of interest in areas with low species richness and a low number of threatened species. In this study, we reviewed the status of bat diversity in the arid parts of southern Africa, with the aim of setting up a baseline for future work. In particular, we described species richness patterns across four arid zones within the region (Namib Desert, Kalahari, Nama Karoo and Succulent Karoo), exploring abiotic gradients and local landscape structure. Additionally, we examined bat functional groups in this region and compared them with those of three other arid regions of the world to identify potential similarities and differences. The southern African arid region hosted 17 bat species, representing eight families, of which three are endemic to the region (Rhinolophus denti, Laephotis namibensis and Cistugo seabrae) and one is vagrant (the fruit bat Eidolon helvum). Species richness varied spatially within this arid region, being highest in the drier but topographically heterogeneous Namib Desert, probably as a result of roost availability. With regards to functional groups, the southern African arid region had few bat species adapted to foraging in open spaces, particularly when compared with the neighbouring savannahs. Drawing from this study, we suggest that: a) despite species richness decreasing with increasing aridity at the sub-continental scale, at a more local scale landscape features (e.g. habitat structure) might be more relevant than aridity in determining bat species richness; and b) an unknown factor, possibly patterns of temperature limiting the availability of insects flying high above the ground, restricted the diversity of the open air foragers throughout the region. We highlight additional areas of research worth investigation.Peer reviewe

Associations between sedentary time, physical activity and bone health among older people using compositional data analysis

Introduction : Aging is associated with a progressive decrease in bone mass (BM), and being physical active is one of the main strategies to combat this continuous loss. Nonetheless, because daily time is limited, time spent on each movement behavior is co-dependent. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between BM and movement behaviors in elderly people using compositional data analysis. Methods : We analyzed 871 older people [395 men (76.9 +/- 5.3y) and 476 women (76.7 +/- 4.7y)]. Time spent in sedentary behavior (SB), light physical activity (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), was assessed using accelerometry. BM was determined by bone densitometry (DXA). The sample was divided according to sex and bone health indicators. Results : The combined effect of all movement behaviors (PA and SB) was significantly associated with whole body, leg and femoral region BM in the whole sample (p<0.05), with leg and pelvic BM (p<0.05) in men and, with whole body, arm and leg BM (p<0.05) in women. In men, arm and pelvic BM were negatively associated with SB and whole body, pelvic and leg BM were positively associated with MVPA (p<0.05). In women, whole body and leg BM were positively associated with SB. Arm and whole body BM were positively associated and leg BM was negatively associated with LPA and arm BM was negatively associated with MVPA (p<0.05). Women without bone fractures spent less time in SB and more in LPA and MVPA than the subgroup with bone fractures. Conclusion : We identified that the positive effect of MVPA relative to the other behaviors on bone mass is the strongest overall effect in men. Furthermore, women might decrease bone fracture risk through PA increase and SB reduction, despite the fact that no clear benefits of PA for bone mass were found

Global patterns of functional trait variation along aridity gradients in bats

Aim Our understanding of the biological strategies employed by species to cope with challenges posed by aridity is still limited. Despite being sensitive to water loss, bats successfully inhabit a wide range of arid lands. We here investigated how functional traits of bat assemblages vary along the global aridity gradient to identify traits that favour their persistence in arid environments. Location Global. Time period Contemporary. Major taxa studied Bats. Methods We mapped the assemblage-level averages of four key bat traits describing wing morphology, echolocation and body size, based on a grid of 100-km resolution and a pool of 915 bat species, and modelled them against aridity values. To support our results, we conducted analyses also at the species level to control for phylogenetic autocorrelation. Results At the assemblage level, we detected a rise in values of aspect ratio, wing loading and forearm length, and a decrease in echolocation frequency with increasing aridity. These patterns were consistent with trends detected at the species level for all traits. Main conclusions Our findings show that trait variation in bats is associated with the aridity gradient and suggest that greater mobility and larger body size are advantageous features in arid environments. Greater mobility favours bats' ability to track patchy and temporary resources, while the reduced surface-to-volume ratio associated with a larger body size is likely to reduce water stress by limiting cutaneous evaporation. These findings highlight the importance of extending attention from species-specific adaptations to broad scale and multispecies variation in traits when investigating the ability of species to withstand arid conditions.Peer reviewe

Reacciones de oxidación en perhalofenil carboxilato derivados de platino(II)

El estudio por voltametría cíclica de los complejos (NBu4)2[cis-PtII(C6F5)2(Horot)] y (NBu4)[cis-PtII(C6F5)2(nic)(Hnic)] muestra que pueden seroxidados. Por ello se han llevado a cabo reacciones de esos compuestos de platino(II),y adicionalmente también de los complejos (NBu4)[cis-PtII(C6F5)2(pic)] y (NBu4)3[(C6F5)2Pt(dipic)(Hdipic)Pt(C6F5)2], con oxidantes como I2, Br2, PhICl2, CH3I y [Fe(Cp)2][PF6], con el fin de obtener derivados en estado de oxidación superior, principalmente de platino(IV). Las reacciones con CH3I y [Fe(Cp)2][PF6] no han funcionado. En el resto de los casos las reacciones han transcurrido por mecanismos de adición oxidante, y los nuevos derivados obtenidos presentan geometría octaédrica y la adición de los ligandos tiene lugar en posiciones trans. Los nuevos complejos se han caracterizado mediante técnicas espectroscópicas (IR, RMN, espectroscopia de masas) y, cuando ha sido posible, también por difracción de rayos X.<br /

Síntesis y caracterización de nuevos complejos de zinc con interacciones débiles

En este trabajo se describe la preparación y caracterización de cinco nuevos complejos de zinc(II) con ligandos xantato y con ligandos polifuncionales N- y O-dadores, que dan lugar a interaciones débiles por enlace de hidrógeno formando agregados supramoleculares.Todos los nuevos complejos preparados se han caracterizado mediante técnicas espectroscópicas (IR, 1H-RMN) y una técnica de difracción de rayos X.<br /

Síntesis y caracterización de nuevos complejos de platino con ligandos polifuncionales

En este trabajo se ha abordado la preparación y caracterización de seis nuevas especies de platino (II), como productos de la reacción de (NBu4)2[Pt(C6F5)4] con ligandos polifuncionales derivados de ácidos orgánicos carboxílicos. Las reacciones transcurren de modo que los protones ácidos de los ligandos provocan la ruptura de alguno de los enlaces Pt–C6F5, con eliminación de C6F5H, lo que permite la coordinación del ligando al centro de platino. Se procedió a la caracterización espectroscópica (IR, 1H-RMN, 19F-RMN) de todos los productos preparados. También se emplearon técnicas de difracción de rayos X para determinar la estructura cristalina de los complejos 1 y 2. La reacción de (NBu4)2[Pt(C6F5)4] con ácido oxálico da lugar al complejo binuclear (NBu4)2[{Pt(C6F5)2}2(μ-C2O4)] (1), donde el ligando oxalato actúa como puente utilizando sus cuatro átomos de oxígeno. El complejo 2 (NBu4)3[(C6F5)2Pt(dipic)(Hdipic)Pt(C6F5)2] se obtuvo por reacción del sustrato de platino con ácido dipicolínico. Es también una especie dinuclear, formada por dos subunidades en las que el Pt se une al ligando dipicolinato. Su empaquetamiento cristalino muestra una interacción de tipo enlace de hidrógeno entre estas dos subunidades. Este complejo es luminiscente, por lo que se ha llevado a cabo el estudio de sus propiedades ópticas. Los complejos 3, 4, 5, y 6 se obtuvieron de la reacción con ácido isocincomerónico, ácido cítrico, ácido DL-málico y ácido DL-tartárico, respectivamente. Asimismo, dado que los complejos preparados tienen propiedades básicas, se intentó su reacción frente a algunos ácidos de Lewis, sin que hubiera resultado

Complejos de níquel y zinc con ligandos polidentados: síntesis y estudio estructural

Síntesis y estudio de nuevas estructuras de xantatos de níquel y zinc con ligandos n-dadores.<br /

Cross-sectional and prospective associations of sleep, sedentary and active behaviors with mental health in older people: a compositional data analysis from the Seniors-ENRICA-2 study

Abstract Background Most studies on the effects of sleep, sedentary behavior (SB), and physical activity (PA) on mental health did not account for the intrinsically compositional nature of the time spent in several behaviors. Thus, we examined the cross-sectional and prospective associations of device-measured compositional time in sleep, SB, light PA (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) with depression symptoms, loneliness, happiness, and global mental health in older people (≥ 65 years). Methods Data were taken from the Seniors-ENRICA-2 study, with assessments in 2015–2017 (wave 0) and 2018–2019 (wave 1). Time spent in sleep, SB, LPA and MVPA was assessed by wrist-worn accelerometers. Depression symptoms, loneliness, happiness, and global mental health were self-reported using validated questionnaires. Analyses were performed using a compositional data analysis (CoDA) paradigm and adjusted for potential confounders. Results In cross-sectional analyses at wave 0 (n = 2489), time-use composition as a whole was associated with depression and happiness (all p < 0.01). The time spent in MVPA relative to other behaviors was beneficially associated with depression (γ = -0.397, p < 0.001), loneliness (γ = -0.124, p = 0.017) and happiness (γ = 0.243, p < 0.001). Hypothetically, replacing 30-min of Sleep, SB or LPA with MVPA was beneficially cross-sectionally related with depression (effect size [ES] ranged -0.326 to -0.246), loneliness (ES ranged -0.118 to -0.073), and happiness (ES ranged 0.152 to 0.172). In prospective analyses (n = 1679), MVPA relative to other behaviors at baseline, was associated with favorable changes in global mental health (γ = 0.892, p = 0.049). We observed a beneficial prospective effect on global mental health when 30-min of sleep (ES = 0.521), SB (ES = 0.479) or LPA (ES = 0.755) were theoretically replaced for MVPA. Conclusions MVPA was cross-sectionally related with reduced depression symptoms and loneliness and elevated level of happiness, and prospectively related with enhanced global mental health. Compositional isotemporal analyses showed that hypothetically replacing sleep, SB or LPA with MVPA could result in modest but significantly improvements on mental health indicators. Our findings add evidence to the emerging body of research on 24-h time-use and health using CoDA and suggest an integrated role of daily behaviors on mental health in older people

Fat Oxidation during Exercise in People with Spinal Cord Injury, and Protocols Used: A Systematic Review

Background: The aim of this study was to summarize evidence on energy metabolism through peak fat oxidation (PFO) and maximum fat oxidation (Fatmax), as well as to analyze the protocols used in people with spinal cord injury (SCI) and to examine the main factors related to fat oxidation ability (i.e., age, sex, level of physical activity, and level and degree of injury). Methods: Studies to determine PFO and Fatmax using indirect calorimetry with an arm exercise protocol for SCI patients were included after a systematic search. Other endpoints included study design, sample size, control group, demographic data, level of injury, physical condition, protocol, outcomes measured, and statistical findings. Results: Eight studies (n = 560) were included. The mean value of VO2peak was 1.86 L∙min−1 (range 0.75–2.60 L∙min−1) (lowest value in the tetraplegic subjects). The PFO ranged between 0.06 and 0.30 g∙min−1 (lowest rates: the non-trained subjects with cervical SCI; highest: the tetraplegic subjects). Two types of exercise protocol were found: arm cycle ergometer, and wheelchair propulsion with a computerized ergometer. Five studies used an incremental protocol (2–3 min/stage, different load increments); the rest performed tests of 20 min/stage at three intensities. Conclusion: There are few existing studies measuring fat oxidation in SCI, many of which used small and heterogeneous samples. PFO was lower in SCI subjects when compared with non-injured people performing lower-limb exercise; however, comparing upper-limb exercise, people with SCI showed higher values.This study was funded by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla La Mancha [PPII-2014-007-A] and the Biomedical Research Networking Center on Frailty and Healthy Aging (CIBERFES), along with FEDER funds from the European Union [CB16/10/00477]. I.R.-G. received a postdoctoral contract from the Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha “Contratos de investigadores postdoctorales para la excelencia científica en el desarrollo del Plan Propio de I + D + I, cofinanciada por el Fondo Social Europeo” (2021/5937). J.L.-M. received a doctoral contract from the Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha “Contratos predoctorales para personal investigador en formación en el marco del Plan Propio de I + D + i, cofinanciada por el Fondo Social Europeo” (2019-PREDUCLM-11385); Plan Propio Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha

Psychometric Properties of the Diener Satisfaction With Life Scale With Five Response Options Applied to the Colombian Population

Introduction: The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), developed by Diener, Emmons, Larsen, and Griffin in 1985, comprises five items with seven response options in terms of agreement-disagreement. Recently, there has been a suggestion to reduce the response options of the SWLS to optimize its applicability in different cultural contexts. Objective: The study aims to assess the psychometric properties of the SWLS with five response options in the Colombian population. Specifically, we studied the dimensionality, invariance by gender and age (among a group of adolescents and emerging adults under 25 years and a group of adults of intermediate age and established adulthood under 59 years), convergent validity (with optimism), and divergent (with pessimism) and concurrent validity with other measures of well-being (flourishing, positive, and negative affects). Methodology: This project was a cross-sectional study using a non-probabilistic sample of the general population. Participants were included if they identified themselves as Colombian and were at least 18 years of age. The final sample comprised 1,255 participants. The average age was 25.62 years (SD = 8.60) ranging from 18 to 67 years of age, and 35.8% of the participants were men. In addition to SWLS, we used the Flourishing Scale (FS), Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R), and Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE). Results: Cronbach's alpha coefficient (0.842), composite reliability (0.851), and average variance extracted (0.537) showed very good values. CFA was conducted to test the one-dimensional structure of FS, showing excellent goodness of fit [χ2(5) = 15.774, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.992, TLI = 0.985, RMSEA = 0.042, 90% RMSEA CI (0.020, 0.066), and SRMR = 0.016]. The correlations calculated among life satisfaction (SWLS) with flourishing (FS), positive and negative affects (SPANE), optimism, and pessimism (LOT-R) were statistically significant and as expected. Configural, metric, and scalar invariance across gender and age were confirmed. Percentiles were provided for the total score and for age. Conclusions: The SWLS with five response options has adequate psychometric properties in the Colombian population, and the use of this version (with 5 response options) is recommended due to its greater applicability