PIG SLURRY TREATMENT STRATEGY IN A HIGH LIVESTOCK CONCENTRATION AREA: ANAEROBIC DIGESTION AS THE KEY PROCESS

Abstract A pig slurry treatment strategy must include processes with the aim of reducing volatile organic compound emissions, controlling odours, mineralising nutrients, improving its fertilising proprieties, and recovering energy, when it is possible. In this sense, anaerobic digestion fulfils all this requirements. However, in areas with high animal farming density and a structural nutrient surplus, it is necessary to include other processes, which favour nutrient redistribution. The objective of this paper is to study the importance of including anaerobic digestion process in the treatment strategy when the main objective is to recover nitrogen by means of ammonia air stripping at 80ºC, or by vacuum evaporation in order to reduce volume and to favour redistribution. Two types of pig slurry (fresh and anaerobically digested slurry) were used and the initial pH was chosen as the control variable. Apart from producing part of the required thermal energy, previous anaerobic digestion presented several clear advantages: The consumption of volatile fatty acids and volatile organic compounds during anaerobic digestion reduced the volatilisation of organic matter in the stripping and vacuum evaporation processes. This fact resulted in high quality condensate when vacuum evaporation is applied and an ammonia salt with low organic matter contamination when nitrogen is recovered with stripping / absorption process. In this case, high ammonia removal efficiency is possible, over 96%, without modifying the pH

The Innominate Bone Sample from Krapina

The Croatian site of Krapina has yielded a large collection of human fossils attributed to the archaic Neandertals. The sample includes fourteen innominate bone specimens, minimum number of seven individuals (MNI=7). Among them, it is possible to distinguish two fully adults (one female, one male), two late adolescent or young adults (both males) and three children of unknown sex. Metric analysis reveals the Krapina hip bones to be characterized by relatively small vertical acetabular diameter compared to the classic Neandertals, and a long and remarkably slender pubis relative to living humans. Morphologically, the Krapina specimens are included within the Neandertal variation, showing a narrow, rounded and/or tilted bone surface between the coronal portion of the greater sciatic notch, and a distinctive morphology of the superior pubic ramus, the latter agreeingwith the metric data. On the other hand, they can be distinguished from the modern human innominate bone in aspect related with the anterior inferior iliac spine, the topography of the posterior wall of the acetabulum, the supraacetabular sulcus and some traits of the superior pubic ramus

Glioblastoma: Vascular Habitats Detected at Preoperative Dynamic Susceptibility-weighted Contrast-enhanced Perfusion MR Imaging Predict Survival

[EN] Purpose: To determine if preoperative vascular heterogeneity of glioblastoma is predictive of overall survival of patients undergoing standard-of-care treatment by using an unsupervised multiparametric perfusion-based habitat-discovery algorithm. Materials and Methods: Preoperative magnetic resonance (MR) imaging including dynamic susceptibility-weighted contrast material-enhanced perfusion studies in 50 consecutive patients with glioblastoma were retrieved. Perfusion parameters of glioblastoma were analyzed and used to automatically draw four reproducible habitats that describe the tumor vascular heterogeneity: high-angiogenic and low-angiogenic regions of the enhancing tumor, potentially tumor-infiltrated peripheral edema, and vasogenic edema. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazard analyses were conducted to assess the prognostic potential of the hemodynamic tissue signature to predict patient survival. Results: Cox regression analysis yielded a significant correlation between patients' survival and maximum relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV(max)) and maximum relative cerebral blood flow (rCBF(max)) in high-angiogenic and low-angiogenic habitats (P < .01, false discovery rate-corrected P < .05). Moreover, rCBF(max) in the potentially tumor-infiltrated peripheral edema habitat was also significantly correlated (P < .05, false discovery rate-corrected P < .05). Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated significant differences between the observed survival of populations divided according to the median of the rCBV(max) or rCBF(max) at the high-angiogenic and low-angiogenic habitats (log-rank test P < .05, false discovery rate-corrected P < .05), with an average survival increase of 230 days. Conclusion: Preoperative perfusion heterogeneity contains relevant information about overall survival in patients who undergo standard-of-care treatment. The hemodynamic tissue signature method automatically describes this heterogeneity, providing a set of vascular habitats with high prognostic capabilities.Study supported by H2020 European Institute of Innovation and Technology (POC-2016.SPAIN-07) and Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (PAID-10-14). J.J.A., E.F.G., and J.M.G.G. supported by Secretaria de Estado de Investigacion, Desarrollo e Innovacion (DPI2016-80054-R, TIN2013-43457-R). E.F.G. supported by CaixaImpulse program from Fundacio Bancaria "la Caixa" (LCF/TR/CI16/10010016). E.F.G and A.A.B. supported by the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia Instituto Investigacion Sanitaria de La Fe (C05).Juan -Albarracín, J.; Fuster García, E.; Pérez-Girbés, A.; Aparici-Robles, F.; Alberich Bayarri, A.; Revert Ventura, AJ.; Martí Bonmatí, L.... (2018). Glioblastoma: Vascular Habitats Detected at Preoperative Dynamic Susceptibility-weighted Contrast-enhanced Perfusion MR Imaging Predict Survival. Radiology. 287(3):944-954. https://doi.org/10.1148/radiol.2017170845S944954287

Teaching biological rhythms in endocrinology: cortisol and wrist temperature. Póster

This work has been developed as part of the Endocrinology and Metabolism student’s laboratory formation from Biology degree at the University of Murcia. Endocrinology and Metabolism is an elective oneterm course that is taught in the fourth year (4.5 ECTS) for "Biosanitary and Biotechnology" intensification. The course focuses on the study of global and intermediary human metabolism and hormonal regulation, both under normal and special situations. It is our objective to get undergraduate students of Endocrinology and Metabolism with the importance of hormonal diurnal fluctuations in endocrine systems through their involvement in an innovative research program. In addition, with the participation of PhD student in this program, we try to improve their skills in innovative teaching. In humans cortisol circadian rhythm peaks in the morning and shows the lowest levels during the midnight. This fluctuation of cortisol plasma level is reflected in saliva, allowing a simple, non invasive and unstressful sample collection. The influence of different factors, exercise, schedule and weekend shifts, on the rhythmic pattern of cortisol has been studied along various years.Campus Mare Nostrum, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena, Universidad de Murcia, Región de Murci

Postcranial morphology of the middle Pleistocene humans from Sima de los Huesos, Spain

Current knowledge of the evolution of the postcranial skeleton in the genus Homo is hampered by a geographically and chronologically scattered fossil record. Here we present a complete characterization of the postcranium of the middle Pleistocene paleodeme from the Sima de los Huesos (SH) and its paleobiological implications. The SH hominins show the following: (i) wide bodies, a plesiomorphic char- acter in the genus Homo inherited from their early hominin ancestors; (ii) statures that can be found in modern human middle-latitude pop- ulations that first appeared 1.6–1.5 Mya; and (iii) large femoral heads in some individuals, a trait that first appeared during the middle Pleistocene in Africa and Europe. The intrapopulational size variation in SH shows that the level of dimorphism was similar to modern humans (MH), but the SH hominins were less encephalized than Ne- andertals. SH shares many postcranial anatomical features with Ne- andertals. Although most of these features appear to be either plesiomorphic retentions or are of uncertain phylogenetic polarity, a few represent Neandertal apomorphies. Nevertheless, the full suite of Neandertal-derived features is not yet present in the SH popula- tion. The postcranial evidence is consistent with the hypothesis based on the cranial morphology that the SH hominins are a sister group to the later Neandertals. Comparison of the SH postcranial skeleton to other hominins suggests that the evolution of the postcranium oc- curred in a mosaic mode, both at a general and at a detailed level

Predicción de la activación neuronal en estimulación tónica en la terapia de EME: uso de modelos 3D de médula espinal personalizados al paciente frente a modelos generalizados

[ES] La terapia de Estimulación de Médula Espinal (EME) es una técnica utilizada para el tratamiento del dolor crónico. En estimulación tónica, el objetivo es estimular las fibras sensitivas Aß que se encuentran en los cordones posteriores de la médula espinal. Esta estimulación produce una sensación de parestesia que bloquea la señal del dolor. Sin embargo, el 35% de los pacientes perciben una estimulación molesta, pues los cambios posturales, la migración de los electrodos o una incorrecta posición de los mismos produce cambios en la parestesia. En los últimos 40 años se han desarrollado modelos computacionales de médula espinal generalizados que permiten entender mejor el efecto de los parámetros de estimulación y de la geometría de los electrodos en la activación neuronal. Pero, el avance hacia una medicina personalizada obliga a desarrollar modelos computacionales personalizados al paciente para optimizar la estimulación de forma individual. Para conocer las ventajas de usar un modelo personalizado frente a uno generalizado, en este estudio se ha comparado la predicción de la activación neuronal y de los parámetros de estimulación que se obtiene de ambos modelos con un caso real. Los resultados muestran que el modelo personalizado predice de forma más aproximada la activación neuronal y, por tanto, el efecto de la estimulación en un paciente. Por tanto, el uso de modelos personalizados podría suponer en un futuro la mejora de la eficacia de la terapia, pues se podría optimizar la programación y la posición de los electrodos antes del implante del sistema de EMESolanes, C.; Durá, JL.; Canós, MA.; De Andres, J.; Martí-Bonmatí, L.; Saiz Rodríguez, FJ. (2020). Predicción de la activación neuronal en estimulación tónica en la terapia de EME: uso de modelos 3D de médula espinal personalizados al paciente frente a modelos generalizados. Sociedad Española de Ingeniería Biomédica. 306-309. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/167126S30630

Prostate Diffusion Weighted-Magnetic Resonance Image analysis using Multivariate Curve Resolution methods

[EN] Multivariate Curve Resolution (MCR) has been applied on prostate Diffusion Weighted-Magnetic Resonance Images (DW-MRI). Different physiological-based modeling approaches of the diffusion process have been submitted to validation by sequentially incorporating prior knowledge on the MCR constraints. Results validate the biexponential diffusion modeling approach and show the capability of the MCR models to find, characterize and locate the behaviors related to the presence of an early prostate tumor.The authors want to thank prof. Anna de Juan for her comments and help in using the software for this study. This research work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under the project DPI 2011-28112-004-02.Aguado Sarrió, E.; Prats-Montalbán, JM.; Sanz Requena, R.; Marti Bonmati, L.; Alberich Bayarri, Á.; Ferrer Riquelme, AJ. (2015). Prostate Diffusion Weighted-Magnetic Resonance Image analysis using Multivariate Curve Resolution methods. Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems. 140:43-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemolab.2014.11.002S434814

Evolution of composition of dairy manure supernatant in a controlled dung pit

Anaerobic conversion of dairy manure into biogas is an attractive way of managing this waste. It is well known that the hydrolysis of large molecules into small, directly biodegradable ones is the rate limiting step of the overall anaerobic process. The present work studies the development of the hydrolytic and acidogenic stages of dairy manure with different solid concentrations (40, 60 and 80 g VS/L) at ambient temperature (20 ° C). The purpose was to determine the operational conditions that provide a liquid fraction with a high soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) and a high volatile fatty acids (VFA) content in manure before the methanogenic stage starts up. At 20 ° C, the evolution of the studied parameters showed that, in a controlled plug-flow dung pit, the hydrolytic and acidogenic stages progressed moderately in a continuous way during the 25 days that the experimentation lasted, whereas no methanization was observed. Supernatant COD and VFA concentrations increased 30% and 107%, respectively, for the 60 g VS/L samples. Manure was also operated at 35 ° C with a similar increase in supernatant COD but a higher increase in VFA, 154%. For both operational temperatures, the predominant VFAs were, in this order, acetic, propionic and butyric acids. During the operation at 35 ° C, the methanogenic stage started between days 20 and 25 for the samples with lower solids content, i.e. 40 and 60 g VS/L