Thirty Minutes Identified as the Threshold for Development of Pain in Low Back and Feet Regions, and Predictors of Intensity of Pain during 1-h Laboratory-Based Standing in Office Workers

[Abstract] This study with 40 office workers investigated (a) the effect of time spent standing on low- back and lower limb pain during a 1-h laboratory-based task; (b) the standing time after which a significant increase in pain is likely; and (c) the individual, physical and psychosocial factors that predict pain. The primary outcome was bodily location of pain and pain intensity on a 100-mm Visual Analogue Scale recorded at baseline and every 15 min. Physical measures included trunk and hip motor control and endurance. Self-report history of pain, physical activity, psychosocial job characteristics, pain catastrophizing and general health status were collected. Univariate analysis and regression models were included. The prevalence of low-back pain increased from 15% to 40% after 30 min while feet pain increased to 25% from 0 at baseline. The intensity of low-back and lower limb pain also increased over time. A thirty-minute interval was identified as the threshold for the development and increase in low-back and feet pain. Modifiable factors were associated with low-back pain intensity—lower hip abductor muscle endurance and poorer physical health, and with feet symptoms—greater body mass index and less core stability

Seabed morphology and bottom water masses related to benthic habitats at the Cristóbal Colón diapir (NW of the Guadalquivir ridge, Gulf of Cádiz)

The seabed morphology and the sub-superficial characteristics of the Cristóbal Colón diapir located on the continental slope of the Gulf of Cadiz have been analysed from data obtained in the framework of the LIFE+INDEMARES/CHICA project. The aim of this study is to recognize the morphological features and the geological processes generated by the bottom water masses and their influence on the habitats and associated benthic communities. The NACW affects the generation of morphological features on the summit, revealing that different oceanographic conditions favoured the carbonate mound growth in the past. The interface between the NACW and the MOW sweeps the bottom from the SE to the NW and the presence of benthic communities dominated by filter feeders on the contouritic drift indicates that this current is strong enough to favour the availability of nutrients and organic particles and to develop both the contouritic deposits on the SE flank and the moats on the N and W flanks.Versión del edito

Evidencias de actividad tectónica contemporánea en el sector oriental de la plataforma continental y talud superior del Golfo de Cádiz (SO de la Península Ibérica)

La interpretación de una serie de registros de sísmica de muy alta resolución con ecosonda paramétrica TOPAS obtenidos en las campañas CADHYS0713, INDEMARES/CHICA1011 y ARSA 0313 en el sector oriental de la plataforma continental y talud superior del Golfo de Cádiz entre los 50 y los 400 m de profundidad, ha permitido identificar una serie de estructuras tectónicas que deforman tanto los depósitos de edad Holoceno y Pleistoceno Superior, como la superficie del fondo . Estas unidades estratigráficas se han identificado sobre la Superficie Transgresiva Posglacial, datada en 18 ka. Las principales estructuras identificadas son fallas normales y fallas inversas, cuya actividad se ha relacionado con fases de elevación de estructuras diapíricas de naturaleza salina que se extienden desde zonas emergidas hasta zonas distales del margen continental del Golfo de Cádiz.Very high resolution parametric echosounder (TOPAS) data interpretation obtained during CADHYS0713, INDEMARES/CHICA1011 and ARSA0313 cruises along the middle, external shelf and upper slope of the eastern Gulf of Cadiz between 50 and 400 m depth has allowed us the identification of several active tectonic structures acting since the Holocene. To date this activiy, it have been identified along the study area three postglacial discontinuities, Postglacial Trangressive Surface (TS) of 18 ky BP; the maximum flooding surface (MFS) of 6.5 ky; and the 3.5 ky Mid highstand deposits surface (MHS). Active normal and reverse faults have been identified whose recent activity is closely linked to the uplift episodes of salt diapirs structures from onshore to distal areas of the continental margin.Versión del edito

Evidencia de fuertes erosiones por abrasión hídrica en el Estrecho de Gibraltar: aspectos morfométricos

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Los montes submarinos en los márgenes continentales de Iberia

Seamounts are first-order morphological elements on continental margins and in oceanic domains, which have been extensively researched over recent decades in all branches of oceanography. These features favour the development of several geological processes, and their study gives us a better understanding of their geological and morphological domains. The seamounts around Iberia are numerous and provide excellent examples of the geodiversity of these morphological elements. Here we present a compilation of 15 seamounts around the Iberian Peninsula. These seamounts have different origins related to the geodynamic evolution (volcanism, extensional or compressive tectonics, and diapirism) of the domains where they are located. The current configuration of their relief has been influenced by Neogene-Quaternary tectonics. Their positioning controls the current morpho-sedimentary processes in the basins and on the margins, and highlights the fact that downslope processes on seamount flanks (mass flows, turbidite flows, and landslides) and processes parallel to seamounts (contouritic currents) correspond to the major geological features they are associated with them. Biogenic structures commonly develop on the tops of seamounts where occasionally isolated shelves form that have carbonate-dominated sedimentation.Los montes submarinos son rasgos morfológicos singulares, cuyo estudio tiene gran relevancia desde el punto de vista de las distintas ramas de la oceanografía. Su presencia favorece el desarrollo de diferentes procesos geológicos y proporciona un mejor conocimiento de los dominios geológicos y morfológicos en los que se encuentran. En el entorno de Iberia, los montes submarinos tienen una amplia representación y tipología. En este trabajo, se presenta una recopilación geológica de 15 montes submarinos (ocho en el Mar Mediterráneo y siete en el Océano Atlántico) de los márgenes continentales de Iberia y en el dominio Oceánico Atlántico, utilizándose levantamientos batimétricos y geofísicos. El origen de estos montes es muy diferente y está relacionado con la evolución geodinámica del dominio geológico en el que aparecen (volcanismo, tectónica extensional o compresional y diapirismo). La configuración actual del relieve ha sido controlada por la actividad tectónica en el Neógeno-Cuaternario. Su presencia controla el desarrollo de los procesos morfosedimentarios recientes de márgenes y cuencas. Los principales procesos sedimentarios asociados a estos montes se relacionan con procesos longitudinales (flujos en masa, flujos turbidíticos, deslizamientos) y transversales a dichos montes (corrientes de contorno). Además es frecuente en ellos el desarrollo de cuerpos biogénicos sobre sus cimas e incluso de plataformas con sedimentación carbonatada. Los montes submarinos de Iberia muestran una gran geodiversidad y constituyen un elemento morfológico de primer orden para comprender los procesos geológicos que tienen lugar en sus márgenes continentales y dominios oceánicos adyacentes.Versión del editor0,000

Multidisciplinary study of mud volcanoes and diapirs and their relationship to seepages and bottom currents in the Gulf of Cádiz continental slope (northeastern sector)

The seabed morphology, type of sediments, and dominant benthic species on eleven mud volcanoes and diapirs located on the northern sector of the Gulf of Cádiz continental slope have been studied. The morphological characteristics were grouped as: (i) fluid-escape-related features, (ii) bottom current features, (iii) mass movement features, (iv) tectonic features and (v) biogenic-related features. The dominant benthic species associated with fluid escape, hard substrates or soft bottoms, have also been mapped. A bottom current velocity analysis allowed, the morphological features to be correlated with the benthic habitats and the different sedimentary and oceanographic characteristics. The major factors controlling these features and the benthic habitats are mud flows and fluid-escape-related processes, as well as the interaction of deep water masses with the seafloor topography. Mud volcano eruptions give rise to mud flows and/or aqueous fluid seepage. These processes sustain chemosynthesis-based communities, closely associated with fluid seepage. Large depressions in the nearby area are influenced by collapse-related phenomena, where active fluid escape and the erosive effect of bottom currents have been identified. When the extrusion activity of the mud volcano is low and the seepage is diffuse, authigenic carbonates form within the edifice sediments. The bottom current sweeps the seafloor from the SE to the NW. When the velocity is moderate, sedimentary contourite processes take place on both sides of the edifices. At high velocities, the authigenic carbonates may be exhumed and colonised by species associated with hard substrates. Small carbonate mounds are found at the summits of some volcanoes and diapirs. Living corals have been found on the tops of the shallowest mud volcanoes, revealing different oceanographic conditions and strong bottom currents that favour the availability of nutrients and organic particles. The edifices affected by very high current velocities are located in the channels where erosive processes dominate.Postprint2,517

Tectónica superficial del talud continental medio del margen continental del Golfo de Cádiz nororiental (SO de Iberia)

The northeastern sector of the Gulf of Cadiz continental margin has been deeply studied the last two decades. The seafloor is characterized by the Gulf of Cadiz Contourite Depositional System, strong diapirism and seepage related to the mobility of the frontal units of the Gibraltar Arc. Since 2010 high resolution bathymetric data and high and very high resolution seismic reflection and parametric echosounder profiles have improved the resolution of the previous collected data set. These data allow to analyze the middle continental slope morphology and its shallow structure with the aim to know the active tectonic processes on the seafloor. Two types of structures have been considered: (a) anticline domes and (b) normal faults which produce linear scarps and tectonic depressions. The shallow tectonics in this region is mainly related to the high mobility of geological formations in the subsoil and their ductile mechanical behaviour.Versión del edito

Dietary Intervention Modulates the Expression of Splicing Machinery in Cardiovascular Patients at High Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Development: From the CORDIOPREV Study

Type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has become a major health problem worldwide. T2DM risk can be reduced with healthy dietary interventions, but the precise molecular underpinnings behind this association are still incompletely understood. We recently discovered that the expression profile of the splicing machinery is associated with the risk of T2DM development. Thus, the aim of this work was to evaluate the influence of 3-year dietary intervention in the expression pattern of the splicing machinery components in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients within the CORDIOPREV study. Expression of splicing machinery components was determined in PBMCs, at baseline and after 3 years of follow-up, from all patients who developed T2DM (Incident-T2DM, n = 107) and 108 randomly selected non-T2DM subjects, who were randomly enrolled in two healthy dietary patterns (Mediterranean or low-fat diets). Dietary intervention modulated the expression of key splicing machinery components (i.e., up-regulation of SPFQ/RMB45/RNU6, etc., down-regulation of RNU2/SRSF6) after three years, independently of the type of healthy diet. Some of these changes (SPFQ/RMB45/SRSF6) were associated with key clinical features and were differentially induced in Incident-T2DM patients and non-T2DM subjects. This study reveals that splicing machinery can be modulated by long-term dietary intervention, and could become a valuable tool to screen the progression of T2DM

From chemosynthesis-based communities to cold-water corals: Vulnerable deep-sea habitats of the Gulf of Cádiz

The Gulf of Cádiz (GoC) represents an area of ecological importance within the northeastern Atlantic Ocean due to the presence of Mediterranean and Atlantic water masses, a heterogeneous seafloor and a biological confluence. Nevertheless, information on the presence of vulnerable deep-sea habitats is still very scarce and it is of importance for further habitat monitoring within the context of the Habitats and Marine Strategy Framework Directives and for improving conservation and resource extraction management. From 2010 to 2012, fluid migration and emission related edifices (e.g., mud volcanoes, diapirs) from the Spanish continental margin of the GoC have been explored using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV; Liropus 2000) and an underwater camera sled (UCS; APHIA 2012) as well as several devices for collecting sediment and fauna. Different vulnerable deep-sea habitats have been observed, including anoxic bottoms with bacterial mats, sea-pen communities, sponge aggregations, antipatharian and gorgonian communities and also cold-water coral banks. Some of these habitats are included in conservation lists of the habitat directive and in international conventions (OSPAR, RAC/SPA), however some of them are located in areas of the GoC that are exposed to intense trawling. The diversity of habitats detected in the Spanish continental margin of the GoC highlights the importance of seepage related edifices as inducers of seabed and habitat heterogeneity in deep-sea areas.En prens