Physico-chemical characteristics of water and ichthyofauna composition of the Piedras Moras reservoir (Córdoba, Argentina)

El embalse Piedras Moras (32°10,13’S, 64°16,50’W) es el último de una serie de seis que se han construido sobre la cuenca del río Tercero en la provincia de Córdoba (Argentina). En el presente estudio se determinaron las principales características físico-químicas del agua y la composición de la ictiofauna del embalse Piedras Moras. Se realizaron muestreos estacionales con mediciones de agua in situ y en laboratorio. Los peces se capturaron con redes de arrastre, enmalle y espineles. El agua se caracterizó por su baja dureza y contenido de sales (164 mg/L). La temperatura, transparencia, pH y oxígeno disuelto no presentaron diferencias significativas entre sitios de muestreo (P>0,05), pero si entre épocas del año (P 0.05), but did occur between seasons (P <0.01). Water temperature varied from 14.7 to 26.5 °C, while the values of dissolved oxygen were within the range of 5.7 and 9.3 ppm. There was a significant correlation between both variables (rs = -0.78, P <0.01). A total of twelve species of fish, belonging to five orders and eight families were captured. The presence of the genus Hypostomus was also confirmed. The largest family was the Characidae. The values of the Shannon-Wiener diversity index ranged from 1.45 to 2.01 bits. Catch per unit effort (CPUEp) of the fishery target species: Odontesthes bonariensis, varied from 0.74 to 3.24 kg / 20hs / gillnet. In the Piedras Moras reservoir there are only eleven of the 29 species recorded in the basin of “Tercero” river. The ichthyofauna at Piedras Moras had greater similarity to the ones in the reservoirs located in the same basin than those which are located in any other one.Fil: Salinas, Víctor. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Mancini, Miguel Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Biolé, Fernanda Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Unidad Ejecutora de Investigaciones en Producción Animal. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Unidad Ejecutora de Investigaciones en Producción Animal; ArgentinaFil: Liendo, Alejandra. Municipalidad de Almafuerte; Argentin

Ecología e implicaciones del parasitismo por Lernaea cyprinacea (Crustacea: Copepoda) en el pejerrey argentino Odontesthes bonariensis (Teleostei: Atherinopsidae)

Lernaea cyprinacea is a cosmopolitan copepod that affects a wide variety of fish. Parasite infestations severity is influenced by environmental factors and varies among fish species. The Argentinian silverside (Odontesthes bonariensis) is one of the most important fish in Argentina’s fisheries. The main characteristics of the water of a Pampean shallow lake in central Argentina (34º38’S, 63º44’W) and different parameters of L. cyprinacea in O. bonariensis were evaluated. The prevalence of L. cyprinacea was of 44.9%, with an average abundance and intensity of 2.2 and 4.0 parasites per fish respectively, with no preference found for the fixation site. A positive correlation was observed between the number of parasites vs. length and fish age. The relative weight (Wr) of the parasitized vs. non-parasitized fish did not show significant differences. The growth parameters of the O. bonariensis evaluated were framed within characteristic values. It is concluded that L. cyprinacea does not alter the body condition of the O. bonariensis with the observed parasitic intensity and water characteristics (2.98 ±0.16 g.L-1 of salinity and temperature of 17.1 ±1.5 ºC). However, esthetic deterioration is observed in fish with high parasitic load.Lernaea cyprinacea es un copépodo cosmopolita que afecta a una gran variedad de peces. La gravedad de las infestaciones del parásito está influenciada por factores ambientales y varía entre especies de peces. El pejerrey (Odontesthes bonariensis) es uno de los peces más importantes de las pesquerías de Argentina. Se evaluaron las principales características del agua de una laguna pampeana del centro de Argentina (34º38’S, 63º44’W) y diferentes parámetros de L. cyprinacea en O. bonariensis. La prevalencia de L. cyprinacea fue de 44,9%, con una abundancia e intensidad promedio de 2,2 y 4,0 parásitos por pez respectivamente, sin hallarse preferencia por el sitio de fijación. Se observó una correlación positiva entre el número de parásitos vs. longitud y edad de los peces. El peso relativo (Wr) de los peces parasitados vs. no parasitados no arrojó diferencias significativas. Los parámetros de crecimiento de O. bonariensis evaluados se encuadraron dentro de los valores característicos. Se concluye que L. cyprinacea no altera la condición corporal de O. bonariensis en la intensidad parasitaria y características del agua observadas (2,98 ±0,16 g.L-1 de salinidad y temperatura de 17,1 ±1,5 ºC), sin embargo, se observa un deterioro estético en peces con alta carga parasitaria.Fil: Mancini, Miguel Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Guagliardo, Silvia Elizabeth. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Del Ponti, Omar. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Recursos Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Salinas, Victor. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Regis, Lorenzo. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Marzuoli, Juan Octavio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Tanzola, Rubén Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur; Argentin

La laguna Melincué (Santa Fe, Argentina): Rasgos históricos, limnología y biología pesquera

La laguna Melincué se ubica en el departamento General López al sur de la provincia de Santa Fe, a la vera de la localidad de Melincué. Es un ambiente que se caracteriza por la elevada variabilidad de su superficie, a partir de dos lagunas independientes llegó a ser un solo ambiente que superó las 14.000 ha. Estas oscilaciones cíclicas se relacionan con las precipitaciones regionales, que también repercuten en ingresos de agua desde la freática…Fil: Mancini, Miguel Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Grosman, Manuel Fabián. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias; ArgentinaFil: Del Ponti, Omar. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Sanzano, Pablo Miguel. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias; ArgentinaFil: Salinas, Victor Hugo. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; ArgentinaFil: Echaniz, Santiago Andrés. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Vignatti, Alicia María. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Bertora, Andrea. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Tecnologia y Calidad de los Alimentos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Cabrera, Gabriela Cecilia. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Regis, Lorenzo. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria; Argentin

Evidence of a landlocked reproducing population of the marine pejerrey Odontesthes argentinensis (Actinopterygii; Atherinopsidae)

In South America, the order Atheriniformes includes the monophyletic genus Odontesthes with 20 species that inhabit freshwater, estuarine and coastal environments. Pejerrey Odontesthes argentinensis is widely distributed in coastal and estuarine areas of the Atlantic Ocean and is known to foray into estuaries of river systems, particularly in conditions of elevated salinity. However, to our knowledge, a landlocked self‐sustaining population has never been recorded. In this study, we examined the pejerrey population of Salada de Pedro Luro Lake (south‐east of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina) to clarify its taxonomic identity. An integrative taxonomic analysis based on traditional meristic, landmark‐based morphometrics and genetic techniques suggests that the Salada de Pedro Luro pejerrey population represents a novel case of physiological and morphological adaptation of a marine pejerrey species to a landlocked environment and emphasises the environmental plasticity of this group of fishesFil: Colautti, Dario César. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Limnología "Dr. Raúl A. Ringuelet". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Instituto de Limnología; ArgentinaFil: Miranda, Leandro Andres. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús). Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús); ArgentinaFil: González Castro, M.. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Villanova, Vanina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Strüssmann, Carlos A.. Tokyo University Of Marine Science And Technology; JapónFil: Mancini, Miguel Alberto. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Maiztegui, Tomás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Limnología "Dr. Raúl A. Ringuelet". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Instituto de Limnología; ArgentinaFil: Berasain, Gustavo. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Ministerio de Asuntos Agrarios; ArgentinaFil: Hattori, Ricardo Shohei. Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology; JapónFil: Grosman, Manuel Fabián. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Sanzano, Pablo Miguel. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Lozano, I.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Llamazares Vegh, Sabina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Salinas, V.. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Del Ponti, O.. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Fresno, P.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús). Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús); ArgentinaFil: Minotti, Priscilla Gail. Universidad Nacional de San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Yamamoto, Y.. Tokyo University Of Marine Science And Technology; JapónFil: Baigún, C.. Universidad Nacional de San Martín; Argentin

Plasma concentrations of persistent organic pollutants and pancreatic cancer risk

dyab115Findings and limitations of previous studies on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and pancreatic cancer risk support conducting further research in prospective cohorts.We conducted a prospective case-control study nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Participants were 513 pancreatic cancer cases and 1020 matched controls. Concentrations of 22 POPs were measured in plasma collected at baseline.Some associations were observed at higher concentrations of p, p’-DDT, trans-nonachlor, β-hexachlorocyclohexane and the sum of six organochlorine pesticides and of 16 POPs. The odds ratio (OR) for the upper quartile of trans-nonachlor was 1.55 (95\.06-2.26; P for trend = 0.025). Associations were stronger in the groups predefined as most valid (participants having fasted \gt;6 h, with microscopic diagnostic confirmation, normal weight, and never smokers), and as most relevant (follow-up ≥10 years). Among participants having fasted \gt;6 h, the ORs were relevant for 10 of 11 exposures. Higher ORs were also observed among cases with microscopic confirmation than in cases with a clinical diagnosis, and among normal-weight participants than in the rest of participants. Among participants with a follow-up ≥10 years, estimates were higher than in participants with a shorter follow-up (for trans-nonachlor: OR = 2.14, 1.01 to 4.53, P for trend = 0.035). Overall, trans-nonachlor, three PCBs and the two sums of POPs were the exposures most clearly associated with pancreatic cancer risk.Individually or in combination, most of the 22 POPs analysed did not or only moderately increased the risk of pancreatic cancer.Peer reviewe

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements

Omecamtiv mecarbil in chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, GALACTIC‐HF: baseline characteristics and comparison with contemporary clinical trials

Aims: The safety and efficacy of the novel selective cardiac myosin activator, omecamtiv mecarbil, in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) is tested in the Global Approach to Lowering Adverse Cardiac outcomes Through Improving Contractility in Heart Failure (GALACTIC‐HF) trial. Here we describe the baseline characteristics of participants in GALACTIC‐HF and how these compare with other contemporary trials. Methods and Results: Adults with established HFrEF, New York Heart Association functional class (NYHA) ≥ II, EF ≤35%, elevated natriuretic peptides and either current hospitalization for HF or history of hospitalization/ emergency department visit for HF within a year were randomized to either placebo or omecamtiv mecarbil (pharmacokinetic‐guided dosing: 25, 37.5 or 50 mg bid). 8256 patients [male (79%), non‐white (22%), mean age 65 years] were enrolled with a mean EF 27%, ischemic etiology in 54%, NYHA II 53% and III/IV 47%, and median NT‐proBNP 1971 pg/mL. HF therapies at baseline were among the most effectively employed in contemporary HF trials. GALACTIC‐HF randomized patients representative of recent HF registries and trials with substantial numbers of patients also having characteristics understudied in previous trials including more from North America (n = 1386), enrolled as inpatients (n = 2084), systolic blood pressure &lt; 100 mmHg (n = 1127), estimated glomerular filtration rate &lt; 30 mL/min/1.73 m2 (n = 528), and treated with sacubitril‐valsartan at baseline (n = 1594). Conclusions: GALACTIC‐HF enrolled a well‐treated, high‐risk population from both inpatient and outpatient settings, which will provide a definitive evaluation of the efficacy and safety of this novel therapy, as well as informing its potential future implementation