The use of long-term high.spatial resolution Normalized Difference vegetation Index (NDVI) to determine different environmental processes in Spain

En esta tesis doctoral se han procesado imágenes de los satélites NOAA-AVHRR de 1,1 km de resolución espacial, disponibles durante tres décadas (1981 - 2015) para obtener una base de datos del índice de vegetación NDVI, para la España peninsular y las Islas Baleares, llamada Sp_1Km_NDVI. El método incluye la calibración de la información con los coeficientes de calibración posteriores al lanzamiento de cada satélite, correcciones geométricas y topográficas, la eliminación de nubes, el filtrado temporal de las series y la obtención de compuestos semi-mensales mediante el valor máximo NDVI de las imágenes. Además, la tesis compara la nueva base de datos Sp_1km_NDVI con otras tres bases de datos NDVI. Se ha comprobado si las tendencias anuales y estacionales de la base de datos Sp_1km_NDVI y las otras tres fuentes de información muestran patrones espaciales y tendencias temporales similares. Los resultados muestran que la nueva base de datos proporciona información sobre la actividad vegetal. Es útil para investigar procesos de cambio climático y procesos relacionados con las actividades humanas, en esta región mediterránea. Y permite identificar una tendencia positiva dominante del NDVI durante el periodo de estudio. En el presente trabajo también se han estudiado la relación entre la actividad vegetal y el crecimiento de los anillos de los árboles, en distintos tipos de bosques, bajo diferentes condiciones ambientales. Para ello, la base de datos de imágenes de satélite NDVI se ha combinado con registros dendrocronológicos y datos climáticos para analizar la variabilidad interanual del crecimiento de los anillos de los árboles y la actividad vegetal en distintos biomas forestales desde 1981 y hasta 2015. Los resultados revelan la existencia de una relación positiva y significativa entre la variabilidad interanual del NDVI y el crecimiento de los anillos de los árboles. Sin embargo, esta relación depende del tipo de bosque y de las condiciones ambientales. Finalmente, se han analizado los impactos de la sequía en el NDVI, ya que la sequía es uno de los principales riesgos naturales que afectan a la actividad de la vegetación en España. En esta parte de la tesis se determinan las posibles diferencias en la sensibilidad de la vegetación a la sequía, determinada por los distintos tipos de cubiertas vegetales y por las condiciones climáticas. Y analiza las escalas de tiempo en las que la actividad vegetal está respondiendo a la severidad de la sequía. Los resultados han demostrado que, en grandes áreas de la España peninsular, la actividad vegetal está fuertemente determinada por las variaciones interanuales de la sequía. Sin embargo, existen importantes diferencias estacionales y espaciales en las que el tipo de cubierta y las condiciones de aridez juegan un papel importante. En esta tesis también se ha mostrado que la escala temporal a la que se mide la sequía es muy relevante para entender los diferentes impactos estacionales, e informa sobre la sensibilidad del NDVI a la sequía a nivel estacional y en diferentes coberturas vegetales.<br /

La Qualitat de l'aigua del riu Cardener en dos moments extrems

En el present article s'ha volgut comparar la qualitat de l'aigua del riu Cardener en dos moments extrems: octubre de 2010 en un moment de pluges abundants; octubre de 2011 en un moment de sequera atípica. L'anàlisi s'ha realitzat a partir de les propietats fisicoquímiques de l'aigua i, de manera específica, a partir del cabal sòlid i la concentració en sals. El resultat ha estat la disminució del cabal sòlid durant el moment més sec, i un equilibri en els dos moments extrems quant a concentració en sals, amb una petita variació al tram final de l'àrea d'estudi.In this article, we aim to compare the water quality in the Cardener River at two different moments: October 2010, with abundant rain, and October 2011, with an atypical drought. An analysis is carried out on the physical and chemical properties of the water and, more specifically, on solid flow and salt concentration. The results show a greater decrease in solid flow values during the drought period than that of abundant rains while the salt concentration values are fairly similar in both moments, though varying in the final segment of the river.En el present article s’ha volgut comparar la qualitat de l’aigua del riu Cardener en dos moments extrems: octubre de 2010 en un moment de pluges abundants; octubre de 2011 en un moment de sequera atípica. L’anàlisi s’ha realitzat a partir de les propietats fisicoquímiques de l’aigua i, de manera específica, a partir del cabal sòlid i la concentració en sals. El resultat ha estat la disminució del cabal sòlid durant el moment més sec, i un equilibri en els dos moments extrems quant a concentració en sals, amb una petita variació al tram final de l’àrea d’estudi

Revisión bibliográfica acerca de Vendajes funcionales como tratamiento para el esguince de ligamento lateral externo del tobillo en futbolistas

Introducción: se presenta información relacionada con la frecuencia de este tipo de lesiones además de nuevas técnicas que se utilizan en la actualidad para el tratamiento de estas, como son el masaje Cyriax, los ultrasonidos o el TENS. Objetivos: el TFG tiene como objetivo aprender acerca de la utilización de los vendajes funcionales como tratamiento para la lesión de ligamento lateral externo del tobillo en futbolistas, completándolo con información sobre la anatomía y principales lesiones en el tobillo.Metodología: tras hacerse una selección de artículos y libros cribándolos por medio de criterios de inclusión y exclusión, se obtuvieron 28 artículos para la realización de este TFG. Se añadió también una tabla con las bases de datos utilizadas, la estrategia de búsqueda y los artículos encontrados. Desarrollo: se obtiene conocimiento acerca de la anatomía del tobillo, tanto de los huesos, como de los músculos y ligamentos de la zona. Asimismo, se describen las lesiones principales del tobillo, centrándose en el esguince de ligamento lateral externo, explicando su diagnóstico, la lesión específica de este ligamento y su anatomía detenidamente. Así, será lo más importante de esto la utilización del vendaje funcional como tratamiento junto a la rehabilitación. Conclusiones: a partir de estos datos se establecen unas conclusiones sobre la gran frecuencia de la utilización de estos vendajes y su gran impacto positivo en la recuperación de la lesión de ligamento lateral externo del tobillo.<br /

The inner view of NGC 1052 using multiple X-ray observations

In this paper, we make a multi-epoch analysis of NGC 1052, one of the prototypical LLAGN, using XMM-Newton, Suzaku and NuSTAR observations, taken from 2001 to 2017. This is the first time that results from NuSTAR observations are reported for NGC 1052. On the technical aspects, we found a wavelength-dependent calibration issue between simultaneous XMM-Newton and NuSTAR spectra. It is described by a change on the photon index of $\rm{ \Gamma_{NuSTAR}- \Gamma_{XMM-Newton}=0.17\pm0.04}$. We use ancillary Chandra data to decontaminate the nuclear spectrum from circumnuclear contributors. We find that two baseline models can fit the broad (0.5-50 keV) X-ray spectrum of the source. One consists of a power-law like continuum which is absorbed by a uniform absorber, reflection from neutral material, and a separate power-law component in the soft band. The second model presents a clumpy absorber. The reflection component is still present, but not the soft band power-law. Instead, absorption by a warm absorber is necessary to fit the spectra. This is the first time that a reflection component is established in this object, thanks to high energy data from NuSTAR. This component is constant in flux and shape, supporting the idea that is produced away from the central source (probably the torus). We find flux, spectral slope and absorption variations on timescales of months to years. We also find that a patchy-absober can explain the behaviour of this source better as it is $\sim$ 200 times more likely than the uniform absober while it yields to smaller intrinsic variations.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Application of the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) for drought analysis and monitoring: characteristics, recommendations and comparison with other indices

The complexity of drought quantification and analysis: • Droughts are difficult to pinpoint in time and space given different economic sectors and natural systems affected. • We identify a drought by its effects or impacts on different types of systems (agriculture, water resources, ecology, forestry, economy, etc.), but there is not a physical variable we can measure to quantify droughts. • Long-term drought objective metrics (streamflows, soil moisture, lake levels, etc.) are commonly not available. Moreover, using only objective metrics other relevant variables to determine drought severity (e.g. the atmospheric water demand) are not taken into account. • We use the so-called “DROUGHT INDICES” for drought quantification and analysis. Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI): The SPEI uses the difference between precipitation and ETo. This represents a simple climatic water balance which is calculated at different time scales to obtain the SPEI. With a value for ETo, the difference between the precipitation (P) and PET for the month i is calculated according to: Di = Pi-EToi, The calculated D values are aggregated at different time scalesPeer Reviewe

Activity of anthracenediones and flavoring phenols in hydromethanolic extracts of Rubia tinctorum against grapevine phytopathogenic fungi

In this work, the chemical composition of Rubia tinctorum root hydromethanolic extract was analyzed by GC–MS, and over 50 constituents were identified. The main phytochemicals were alizarin-related anthraquinones and flavoring phenol compounds. The antifungal activity of this extract, alone and in combination with chitosan oligomers (COS) or with stevioside, was evaluated against the pathogenic taxa Diplodia seriata, Dothiorella viticola and Neofusicoccum parvum, responsible for the so-called Botryosphaeria dieback of grapevine. In vitro mycelial growth inhibition tests showed remarkable activity for the pure extract, with EC50 and EC90 values as low as 66 and 88 μg·mL−1, respectively. Nonetheless, enhanced activity was attained upon the formation of conjugate complexes with COS or with stevioside, with synergy factors of up to 5.4 and 3.3, respectively, resulting in EC50 and EC90 values as low as 22 and 56 μg·mL−1, respectively. The conjugate with the best performance (COS–R. tinctorum extract) was then assayed ex situ on autoclaved grapevine wood against D. seriata, confirming its antifungal behavior on this plant material. Finally, the same conjugate was evaluated in greenhouse assays on grafted grapevine plants artificially inoculated with the three aforementioned fungal species, resulting in a significant reduction in the infection rate in all cases. This natural antifungal compound represents a promising alternative for developing sustainable control methods against grapevine trunk disease

Assessment of conjugate complexes of chitosan and Urtica dioica or Equisetum arvense extracts for the control of grapevine trunk pathogens

In the work presented herein, we analyze the efficacy of three basic substances that comply with European Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009, namely chitosan, horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) and nettle (Urtica dioica L.), for the control of grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs) in organic farming. The E. arvense and U. dioica aqueous extracts, prepared according to SANCO/12386/2013 and SANTE/11809/2016, have been studied by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS), identifying their main active constituents. The three basic substances, either alone or in combination (forming conjugate complexes), have been tested in vitro against eight Botryosphaeriaceae species, and in vivo, in grafted plants artificially inoculated with Neofusicoccum parvum and Diplodia seriata. A clear synergistic behavior between chitosan and the two plant extracts has been observed in the mycelial growth inhibition tests (resulting in EC90 values as low as 208 μg·mL−1 for some of the isolates), and statistically significant differences have been found in terms of vascular necroses lengths between treated and non-treated plants, providing further evidence of aforementioned synergism in the case of D. seriata. The reported data supports the possibility of extending the applications of these three basic substances in Viticulture beyond the treatment of mildew

Rutin-stevioside and related conjugates for potential control of grapevine trunk diseases

Flavonoids and phenolic acids play roles in grapevine defence against pathogens causing grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs). Rutin is a major flavonoid in vegetative organs of the grapevines, and this compound, unlike other flavonoids, is non-toxic and non-oxidizable. Rutin was assayed in vitro and in vivo against two Botryosphaeriaceae taxa. The limited bioavailability of this compound was circumvented by conjugation with stevioside, a glycoside obtained from Stevia rebaudiana. Clear synergistic effects were observed for the stevioside-rutin adduct, resulting in EC50 and EC90 values of 306.0 and 714.9 μg·mL-1 against Neofusicoccum parvum and 241.6 and 457.8 μg·mL-1 against Dothiorella viticola. In greenhouse experiments, moderate inhibition of N. parvum growth and complete inhibition of D. viticola were observed. These inhibitory effects were greater than those of ferulic acid, which has been considered the most effective phenolic acid against GTDs. Conjugation with stevioside provided solubility enhancement of rutin, paving the way to the design of glycopesticides based on rutin-rich plant extracts as promising antifungals against GTDs

Multifunctional Nanocarriers Based on Chitosan Oligomers and Graphitic Carbon Nitride Assembly

In this study, a graphitic carbon nitride and chitosan oligomers (g-C3N4–COS) nanocarrier assembly, which was obtained by cross-linking with methacrylic anhydride (MA), was synthesized and characterized. Its characterization was carried out using infrared spectroscopy, elemental and thermal analyses, and transmission electron microscopy. The new nanocarriers (NCs), with an average particle size of 85 nm in diameter and a 0.25 dispersity index, showed photocatalytic activity (associated with the g-C3N4 moiety), susceptibility to enzymatic degradation (due to the presence of the COS moiety), and high encapsulation and moderate-high release efficiencies (>95% and >74%, respectively). As a proof of concept, the visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity of the NCs was tested for rhodamine B degradation and the reduction of uranium(VI) to uranium(IV). Regarding the potential of the nanocarriers for the encapsulation and delivery of bioactive products for crop protection, NCs loaded with Rubia tinctorum extracts were investigated in vitro against three Vitis vinifera phytopathogens (viz. Neofusicoccum parvum, Diplodia seriata, and Xylophilus ampelinus), obtaining minimum inhibitory concentration values of 750, 250, and 187.5 µg·mL−1, respectively. Their antifungal activity was further tested in vivo as a pruning wound protection product in young ‘Tempranillo’ grapevine plants that were artificially infected with the two aforementioned species of the family Botryosphaeriaceae, finding a significant reduction of the necrosis lengths in the inner woody tissues. Therefore, g-C3N4-MA-COS NCs may be put forward as a multifunctional platform for environmental and agrochemical delivery applications

Status of the LEgnaro NeutrOn Source facility (LENOS)

Abstract LENOS is a new facility under development at Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro (LNL). It is based on a new technic for neutron beam shaping in accelerator based neutron sources. The main advantage of this method is to be able to shape the primary charged-particle beam to a defined energy distribution that, impinging on a neutron producing target, generates the desired neutron spectra at the sample position. Together with the proton energy distribution, other degrees of freedom are used to obtain the desired neutron energy spectra, e.g. the angular distribution of produced neutrons, the nuclear reactions used for the neutron spectra production, and the convolution of neutron spectra coming from different target materials. The main advantage of this new approach is the good control over the energy and spatial distribution of the produced neutron spectrum avoiding most of the problems due to neutron moderation, since it is easier to work with charged particles than with neutrons. The goal of the LENOS facility is to obtain a Maxwell-Boltzmann neutron energy spectrum with tunable temperature and a high neutron flux at sample position by using the 7Li(p,n) reaction. To maximize the neutron flux a very narrow primary proton beam has to be used, so the target has to remove a very high specific power. Currently available lithium targets are inadequate to sustain the high specific power that needs to be dissipated in the LENOS facility. A dedicated target based on micro-channel geometry and liquid metal cooling has been developed and tested. This contribution describes the status of the LENOS facility