Consequences of sealing of soil in the Field of Cartagena (Murcia)

El sellado antropogénico de los suelos constituye un proceso de degradación física y medioambiental, tanto a escala local como regional, y produce la pérdida de los recursos del suelo debido a su recubrimiento con materiales para la construcción de viviendas, carreteras, etc. El objetivo de este estudio ha sido comprobar, en el sector oriental del Campo de Cartagena (Murcia), la expansión urbanística, que ha tenido lugar en las últimas décadas y ver las consecuencias que esta ha producido en relación con el sellado de los suelos. Para la realización de este estudio, se han utilizado: imágenes áreas y de satélite de los años 1980 y 2007, trabajos de campo y recopilación de datos de las estadísticas agrarias municipales. Como conclusión merece destacarse como desde 1981 a 2007, la superficie de suelo sellada en el área de estudio ha pasado de poco más de 1.000 has a casi 4.000 has, lo que supone un aumento del 362%.The anthropogenic sealing of soils is a physical and environmental degradation process, both locally and regionally, and causes loss of soil resources due to its coating materials for housing, roads, etc. The aim of this study was to verify, in the eastern sector of the Campo de Cartagena (Murcia), urban expansion, which has taken place in recent decades and see the consequences that this has occurred in relation to soil sealing. For this study, we used: aerial imagery and satellite images of the 1980 and 2007, fieldwork and data collection of municipal agricultural statistics. As a conclusion was obtained that from 1981 to 2007, the sealed soil surface in the study area has increased from just over 1,000 has to almost 4,000 has, representing an increase of 362%

Autophagy in protists

Autophagy is the degradative process by which eukaryotic cells digest their own components using acid hydrolases within the lysosome. Originally thought to function almost exclusively in providing starving cells with nutrients taken from their own cellular constituents, autophagy is in fact involved in numerous cellular events including differentiation, turnover of macromolecules and organelles and defense against parasitic invaders. During the past 10-20 years, molecular components of the autophagic machinery have been discovered, revealing a complex interactome of proteins and lipids, which, in a concerted way, induce membrane formation to engulf cellular material and target it for lysosomal degradation. Here, our emphasis is autophagy in protists. We discuss experimental and genomic data indicating that the canonical autophagy machinery characterized in animals and fungi appeared prior to the radiation of major eukaryotic lineages. Moreover, we describe how comparative bioinformatics revealed that this canonical machinery has been subject to moderation, outright loss or elaboration on multiple occasions in protist lineages, most probably as a consequence of diverse lifestyle adaptations. We also review experimental studies illustrating how several pathogenic protists either utilize autophagy mechanisms or manipulate host-cell autophagy in order to establish or maintain infection within a host. The essentiality of autophagy for the pathogenicity of many parasites, and the unique features of some of the autophagy-related proteins involved, suggest possible new targets for drug discovery. Further studies of the molecular details of autophagy in protists will undoubtedly enhance our understanding of the diversity and complexity of this cellular phenomenon and the opportunities it offers as a drug target