Components, drivers and temporal dynamics of ecosystem respiration in a Mediterranean pine forest

To investigate the climate impacts on the different components of ecosystem respiration, we combined soil efflux data from a tree-girdling experiment with eddy covariance CO2 fluxes in a Mediterranean maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) forest in Central Italy. 73 trees were stem girdled to stop the flux of photosynthates from the canopy to the roots, and weekly soil respiration surveys were carried out for one year. Heterotrophic respiration (RH) was estimated from the soil CO2 flux measured in girdled plots, and rhizosphere respiration (RAb) was calculated as the difference between respiration from controls (RS) and girdled plots (RH). Results show that the RS dynamics were clearly driven by RH (average RH/RS ratio 0.74). RH predictably responded to environmental variables, being predominantly controlled by soil water availability during the hot and dry growing season (MayeOctober) and by soil temperature during the wetter and colder months (NovembereMarch). High RS and RH peaks were recorded after rain pulses greater than 10 mm on dry soil, indicating that large soil carbon emissions were driven by the rapid microbial oxidation of labile carbon compounds. We also observed a time-lag of one week between water pulses and RAb peaks, which might be due to the delay in the translocation of recently assimilated photosynthates from the canopy to the root system. At the ecosystem scale, total autotrophic respiration (RAt, i.e. the sum of carbon respired by the rhizosphere and aboveground biomass) amounted to 60% of ecosystem respiration. RAt was predominantly controlled by photosynthesis, and showed high temperature sensitivity (Q10) only during the wet periods. Despite the fact that the study coincided with an anomalous dry year and results might therefore not represent a general pattern, these data highlight the complex climatic control of the respiratory processes responsible for ecosystem CO2 emissions. © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Seasonal trends and environmental controls of methane emissions in a rice paddy field in Northern Italy

Rice paddy fields are one of the greatest anthropogenic sources of methane (CH4), the third most important greenhouse gas after water vapour and carbon dioxide. In agricultural fields, CH4 is usually measured with the closed chamber technique, resulting in discontinuous series of measurements performed over a limited area, that generally do not provide sufficient information on the short-term variation of the fluxes. On the contrary, aerodynamic techniques have been rarely applied for the measurement of CH4 fluxes in rice paddy fields. The eddy covariance (EC) technique provides integrated continuous measurements over a large area and may increase our understanding of the underlying processes and diurnal and seasonal pattern of CH4 emissions in this ecosystem. For this purpose a Fast Methane Analyzer (Los Gatos Research Ltd.) was installed in a rice paddy field in the Po Valley (Northern Italy). Methane fluxes were measured during the rice growing season with both EC and manually operated closed chambers. Methane fluxes were strongly influenced by the height of the water table, with emissions peaking when it was above 10–12 cm. Soil temperature and the developmental stage of rice plants were also responsible of the seasonal variation on the fluxes. The measured EC fluxes showed a diurnal cycle in the emissions, which was more relevant during the vegetative period, and with CH4 emissions being higher in the late evening, possibly associated with higher water temperature. The comparison between the two measurement techniques shows that greater fluxes are measured with the chambers, especially when higher fluxes are being produced, resulting in 30% higher seasonal estimations with the chambers than with the EC (41.1 and 31.7 gCH4 m−2 measured with chambers and EC respectively) and even greater differences are found if shorter periods with high chamber sampling frequency are compared. The differences may be a result of the combined effect of overestimation with the chambers and of the possible underestimation by the EC technique.JRC.H.7-Climate Risk Managemen

ANÁLISIS DE LOS RESULTADOS A CORTO PLAZO DE LA CIRUGÍA DEL CÁNCER DE COLON EN EL HOSPITAL SAN JORGE DE HUESCA

Introducción El cáncer de colon es una enfermedad a la que debe enfrentarse el cirujano con relativa frecuencia porque esta neoplasia se ha convertido en un problema de salud en todo el mundo. El objetivo del tratamiento quirúrgico del cáncer de colon es la resección en bloque del tumor con unos márgenes de seguridad correctos, efectuando la exéresis de todo el territorio ganglionar. Material y métodos Se ha realizado un estudio retrospectivo a partir de una base de datos completada de forma prospectiva Servicio de Cirugía General y del Aparato Digestivo del Hospital San Jorge de Huesca, con los datos de pacientes intervenidos quirúrgicamente de forma programada de cualquier tipo de resección colónica con intención curativa, desde Enero de 2010 hasta Diciembre de 2016. Todos los pacientes fueron diagnosticados de adenocarcinoma colorrectal confirmado histológicamente (tanto en nuestro hospital como en otros centros) y presentaban lesiones resecables en el momento de la decisión quirúrgica. Postoperatoriamente, todos los pacientes tuvieron confirmación anatomopatológica en el estudio histológico de adenocarcinoma colorrectal (CCR). De estos pacientes con CCR fueron objeto del estudio exclusivamente aquellos con localización del cáncer en el colon (CC), por lo que la muestra final fue de 220 pacientes. Resultados En el Hospital San Jorge se cumplieron los estándares de calidad establecidos en cirugía del CCR en cuanto a índice de conversión a cirugía abierta y morbimortalidad postoperatoria

Resultados iniciales de la cirugía de cáncer de colon tras la implementación del programa de screening en el Hospital San Jorge

Introducción: El cáncer colorrectal es el tumor más frecuente considerando ambos sexos tanto a nivel mundial como en España, donde también es el segundo cáncer con mayor mortalidad, después del cáncer de pulmón. Esta prevalencia se prevee que aumente debido al envejecimiento poblacional y al estilo de vida. Sin embargo, se ha demostrado que la aplicación de programas de cribado sobre la población en este tipo de cáncer, reduce la recurrencia tumoral y la mortalidad, gracias al diagnóstico de la enfermedad en estadios precoces. Es por ello que en la actualidad se están implantando, a nivel nacional, programas de cribado en las diferentes comunidades autónomas, como ha sucedido en Aragón. En concreto en el Hospital San Jorge de Huesca, el programa de cribado comenzó en 2016 y se mantiene hasta la actualidad. Objetivos Exponer los resultados iniciales a corto plazo sobre la morbilidad del postoperatorio inmediato a 90 días del cáncer de colon, la mortalidad y la estancia hospitalaria tras la implantación de un programa de cribado en nuestro centro. Material y métodos Se ha realizado un estudio retrospectivo a partir de una base de datos completada de forma prospectiva, en el que se incluyen a 73 pacientes, con una edad comprendida entre los 60 a 69 años, diagnosticados de cáncer de colon e intervenidos quirúrgicamente de forma programada de cualquier tipo de resección colónica con intención curativa, desde enero de 2010 hasta diciembre de 2017. Todos los pacientes fueron diagnosticados, de forma convencional o a través de programa de cribado, este último según el plan implantado en nuestra comunidad, mediante sangre oculta en heces (FIT) y colonoscopia. Se ha dividido la muestra en dos grupos de pacientes en función de la forma de diagnóstico ( Grupo Si screening=25 pacientes, Grupo No screening= 48 pacientes) y se han comparado en función de 16 variables, que se agrupan principalmente en cuatro grupos: Factores dependientes del paciente, del cáncer de colon, de la resección del cáncer de colon y del seguimiento. Para el análisis estadístico, se ha utilizado en la estadística descriptiva medidas de tendencia central y en el análisis inferencial, los test estadísticos correspondientes para cada tipo de variable. Resultados Ambos grupos fueron homogéneos y comparables en todas las variables del estudio, ya que no se han observado diferencias estadísticamente significativas al comparar ninguna de las características clínico-patológicas estudiadas: edad (p=0.179), sexo (p=0.297), riesgo ASA (p=0.628), localización CCR (p=0.092), número de ganglios resecados (p=0.118), estadio tumoral (p=0,276), intervención quirúrgica (p=0,512), resección tumoral (p=0,999), tipo de abordaje (p=0,872) ni necesidad de conversión de la técnica quirúrgica (p=0,095). En cuanto a las variables englobadas en el seguimiento, no se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en cuanto a la mortalidad postoperatoria-Clavien-Dindo V (p=0,202), pero sí en la morbilidad postoperatoria (p=0,006) y en su clasificación según Clavien Dindo I-IV (p=0,018). Las complicaciones analizadas de forma independiente como la dehiscencia de anastomosis (p=0,023) o el íleo postoperatorio (p=0,033) también han presentado diferencias significativas, al contrario que la infección de herida quirúrgica (p=0,115). Tampoco se han observado diferencias significativas al comparar la estancia hospitalaria (p=0,166). Conclusión En nuestro centro, la aplicación del programa de screening no ha influido en el estadio del cáncer de colon ni en su enfoque quirúrgico. Sin embargo, hemos hallado una menor tasa de morbilidad global y de complicaciones menores, justificadas por una menor incidencia de dehiscencia de anastomosis e íleo postoperatorio. Introduction Colorectal cancer is the most frequent tumor attending to both gender in the world and even in Spain, where it is also the second most frequent cancer and it has the highest mortality after lung cancer. This prevalence is expected to increase due to population aging and lifestyle. However, the application of screening programs on the population in this type of cancer has been shown that reduces tumor recurrence and mortality, thanks to the diagnosis of the disease in early stages. For this reason, screening programs are being implemented at the national level in the different Spanish regions, as has happened in Aragón. Specifically, at the San Jorge Hospital in Huesca, the screening program began in 2016 and its application continues until now. Objective To present the initial short-term results on the morbidity of the immediate postoperative period to 90 days of colon cancer, mortality and hospital stay after the implementation of a screening program in our center. Material and methods A retrospective study was performed based on a prospectively completed database. We included 73 patients aged between 60 and 69 years, diagnosed with colon cancer. They underwent surgery on a scheduled, with any type of colonic resection and curative intent, from January 2010 to December 2017. All patients were diagnosed, conventionally or through a screening program, the latter according to the plan implemented in our community, using fecal occult blood ( FIT) and colonoscopy. The sample was divided into two groups of patients according to the way of being diagnosed (Group Si screening = 25 patients, Group No screening = 48 patients) and they were compared according to 16 variables, which are grouped mainly into four groups: Dependent factors of the patient, factor of type colon cancer, factors of colon cancer resection and follow-up. For the statistical analysis, measures of central tendency were used in the descriptive statistics and the corresponding statistical tests for each type of variable were used for inferential analysis. Results Both groups were homogeneous and comparable in all study variables, because no statistically significant differences were observed comparing any of the clinical-pathological characteristics studied: age (p = 0.179), sex (p= 0.297), ASA risk ( p = 0.628), CCR localization (p = 0.092), number of resected lymph nodes (p = 0.118), tumor stage (p = 0.276), surgical intervention (p = 0.512), tumor resection (p = 0.999), type of surgical approach (p = 0.872) or need for conversion to open approach of the surgical technique (p = 0.095). Regarding the variables included in the follow-up, no statistically significant differences were found in terms of postoperative mortality-Clavien-Dindo V (p = 0.202). However we found differences statistically significant in postoperative morbidity (p = 0.006) and in its classification according to Clavien Dindo I-IV (p = 0.018). The complications analyzed independently , such as anastomotic dehiscence (p = 0.023) or postoperative ileus (p = 0.033), have also presented significant differences, unlike surgical wound infection (p = 0.115). No significant differences were observed when we compared hospital stay (p = 0.166). Conclusion At our center, the application of the screening program has not influenced in the initial stage of colon cancer or its surgical approach. However, we have found a lower overall morbidity rate and minor complications, justified by a lower incidence of anastomotic dehiscence and postoperative ileus.<br /

Ozone deposition impact assessments for forest canopies require accurate ozone flux partitioning on diurnal timescales

Dry deposition is an important sink of tropospheric ozone that affects surface concentrations and impacts crop yields, the land carbon sink, and the terrestrial water cycle. Dry deposition pathways include plant uptake via stomata and non-stomatal removal by soils, leaf surfaces, and chemical reactions. Observational studies indicate that ozone deposition exhibits substantial temporal variability that is not reproduced by atmospheric chemistry models due to a simplified representation of vegetation uptake processes in these models. In this study, we explore the importance of stomatal and non-stomatal uptake processes in driving ozone dry deposition variability on diurnal to seasonal timescales. Specifically, we compare two land surface ozone uptake parameterizations - a commonly applied big leaf parameterization (W89; Wesely, 1989) and a multi-layer model (MLC-CHEM) constrained with observations - to multi-year ozone flux observations at two European measurement sites (Ispra, Italy, and Hyytiala, Finland). We find that W89 cannot reproduce the diurnal cycle in ozone deposition due to a misrepresentation of stomatal and non-stomatal sinks at our two study sites, while MLC-CHEM accurately reproduces the different sink pathways. Evaluation of non-stomatal uptake further corroborates the previously found important roles of wet leaf uptake in the morning under humid conditions and soil uptake during warm conditions. The misrepresentation of stomatal versus non-stomatal uptake in W89 results in an overestimation of growing season cumulative ozone uptake (CUO), a metric for assessments of vegetation ozone damage, by 18 % (Ispra) and 28 % (Hyytiala), while MLC-CHEM reproduces CUO within 7 % of the observation-inferred values. Our results indicate the need to accurately describe the partitioning of the ozone atmosphere-biosphere flux over the in-canopy stomatal and non-stomatal loss pathways to provide more confidence in atmospheric chemistry model simulations of surface ozone mixing ratios and deposition fluxes for large-scale vegetation ozone impact assessments.Peer reviewe

COOPER@CCIÓN EDUCATIVA PARA EL EEES: Una experiencia de innovación docente en el ámbito de las Ciencias de la Educación

Informe- análisis del proyecto " COOPR@CCIÓN EDCUATIVA PARA EL EEES"La cooperación educativa en Educación Superior adopta una especial relevancia cuando superamos la intencionalidad colaborativa de la colegialidad artificial para adentrarnos en el mundo de significados del desarrollo profesional y del ejercicio solidario, porque se erige en herramienta de transformación de las prácticas educativas, pero también de la cultura en la que ésta se desarrolla (Hargreaves, 1991, 1999; Pérez Gómez, 2004; Pujolàs, 2005). En una sociedad postmoderna fuertemente deshumanizada, apostar por la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de la cooperación como pensamiento práctico o como competencia compleja (Pérez Gómez, 2007, 2008) supone, en los nuevos grados de maestro-a, algo más que una opción romántica, o una apuesta crítica. Es contribuir a la selección cultural que suponen un curriculum -universitario- (Gimeno Sacristán, 1988) que, al fin y al cabo, es lo que supone el diseño y puesta en práctica de un plan de estudios. Es poner en acción dicho curriculum dotándolo de valores e ideología, ética, amor y compromiso (López Melero, 2005). En este contexto, en que el que dialogamos sobre reinventar la profesión docente, necesitamos el cuestionamiento de la formación inicial del profesorado que, respondiendo a un curriculum prescrito , ha forzado la presencia del aprendizaje cooperativo como competencia profesional. En nosotros y nosotras está decidir con qué sentido

Neural Network Analysis to Evaluate Ozone Damage to Vegetation Under Different Climatic Conditions

Tropospheric ozone (O-3) is probably the air pollutant most damaging to vegetation. Understanding how plants respond to O(3)pollution under different climate conditions is of central importance for predicting the interactions between climate change, ozone impact and vegetation. This work analyses the effect of O(3)fluxes on net ecosystem productivity (NEP), measured directly at the ecosystem level with the eddy covariance (EC) technique. The relationship was explored with artificial neural networks (ANNs), which were used to model NEP using environmental and phenological variables as inputs in addition to stomatal O(3)uptake in Spring and Summer, when O(3)pollution is expected to be highest. A sensitivity analysis allowed us to isolate the effect of O-3, visualize the shape of the O-3-NEP functional relationship and explore how climatic variables affect NEP response to O-3. This approach has been applied to eleven ecosystems covering a range of climatic areas. The analysis highlighted that O(3)effects over NEP are highly non-linear and site-specific. A significant but small NEP reduction was found during Spring in a Scottish shrubland (-0.67%), in two Italian forests (up to -1.37%) and during Summer in a Californian orange orchard (-1.25%). Although the overall seasonal effect of O(3)on NEP was not found to be negative for the other sites, with episodic O(3)detrimental effect still identified. These episodes were correlated with meteorological variables showing that O(3)damage depends on weather conditions. By identifying O(3)damage under field conditions and the environmental factors influencing to that damage, this work provides an insight into O(3)pollution, climate and weather conditions.Peer reviewe

COOPER@CCIÓN EDUCATIVA PARA EL EEES: Compartiendo nuestras experiencias

10 experienciascatálogo de experiencias desarrolladas sobre aprendizaje cooperativo en contexto universitari

JRC-Ispra Atmosphere - Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station: 2016 report

A comprehensive set of essential atmospheric variables have been measured at the JRC-Ispra Atmosphere - Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station (ABC-IS) for several years to assess the impact of European policies and international conventions on air pollution and climate forcing. The variables we measure at the Atmospheric Observatory in Ispra include greenhouse gas concentrations (CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6), radon (222Rn) activity concentration, short-lived gaseous and particulate pollutant (CO, SO2, NO, NO2, O3, PM2.5 and its main ionic and carbonaceous constituents) concentrations, atmospheric particle micro-physical characteristics (number concentration and size distribution) and optical properties (light scattering and absorption in-situ, light scattering and extinction vertical profiles remotely), eutrophying and acidifying species (SO42-, NO3-, NH4+) wet deposition. Vegetation atmosphere exchanges (CO2, O3, H2O and heat) are measured at our Forest Flux Station of San Rossore, backed up by meteorological and pedological measurements. The ABC-IS 2016 report presents the data produced during the past year in the context of the previous years of measurements.JRC.C.5-Air and Climat

JRC – Ispra: Atmosphere – Biosphere – Climate Integrated monitoring Station: 2015 Report

A comprehensive set of essential atmospheric variables have been measured at the JRC-Ispra Atmosphere -Biosphere - Climate Integrated monitoring Station (ABC-IS) for several years to detect the impact of European policies and international conventions on air pollution and climate forcing. The variables we measure include greenhouse gas concentrations (CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6), radon (222Rn)activity concentration, short-lived gaseous and particulate pollutants (CO, SO2, NO, NO2, O3, PM2.5 and its main ionic and carbonaceous constituents), atmospheric particle micro-physical characteristics (number concentration and size distribution) and optical properties (light scattering and absorption in-situ, light scattering and extinction vertical profiles remotely), eutrophying and acidifying species (SO42-, NO3-, NH4+) wet deposition, and vegetation atmosphere exchanges (CO2, O3, H2O and heat), backed up by meteorological and pedological measurements. All the measurements performed at ABC-IS are made under international projects and programs like InGOS (Integrated non-CO2 Greenhouse gas Observation System), ACTRIS (the EU research Infra-Structure for the observation of Aerosols, Clouds and TRace gases), EMEP (co-operative Program for Monitoring and Evaluation of the long range transmission of air pollutants in Europe) and GAW (Global Atmosphere Watch), which implies the use of standard methods and scales, and the participation in quality assurance activities. The JRC has a leading role in ACTRIS and EMEP regarding the quality assurance for carbonaceous aerosol measurements. All the data obtained at ABC-IS are submitted to international open data bases (www.europe-fluxdata.eu, fluxnet.ornl.gov, www.ingos-infrastructure.eu, ebas.nilu.no,) and can be freely downloaded from these web sites. The data we produce are used in European wide assessments, for model inputs and validation, and for calibrating satellite airborne sensors. The ABC-IS 2015 report presents the data produced during the past year in the context of the previous years of measurements.JRC.C.5-Air and Climat