Lianas decelerate tropical forest thinning during succession

The well-established pattern of forest thinning during succession predicts an increase in mean tree biomass with decreasing tree density. The forest thinning pattern is commonly assumed to be driven solely by tree-tree competition. The presence of non-tree competitors could alter thinning trajectories, thus altering the rate of forest succession and carbon uptake. We used a large-scale liana removal experiment over 7years in a 60- to 70-year-old Panamanian forest to test the hypothesis that lianas reduce the rate of forest thinning during succession. We found that lianas slowed forest thinning by reducing tree growth, not by altering tree recruitment or mortality. Without lianas, trees grew and presumably competed more, ultimately reducing tree density while increasing mean tree biomass. Our findings challenge the assumption that forest thinning is driven solely by tree-tree interactions; instead, they demonstrate that competition from other growth forms, such as lianas, slow forest thinning and ultimately delay forest succession

Impaired beta cell function is present in nondiabetic rheumatoid arthritis patients

Introduction: To investigate how markers of β-cell secretion (proinsulin-processing metabolites) are expressed in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and their potential relation with the insulin resistance (IR) observed in these patients. Methods: The 101 RA patients and 99 nondiabetic sex- and age-matched controls were included. IR by homeostatic model assessment (HOMA2), and β-cell secretion, as measured by insulin, split and intact proinsulin, and C-peptide levels were determined for both groups. Multiple regression analysis was performed to compare IR between groups and to explore the interrelations between RA features, proinsulin metabolites, and IR. Data were adjusted for glucocorticoids intake and for IR classic risk factors. Results: Compared with controls, RA patients showed higher HOMA-IR (β coef., 0.40 (95% CI, 0.20 to 0.59); P = 0.00). When data were adjusted for glucocorticoids intake, noncorticosteroid patients maintained a higher IR index (β, 0.14 (0.05 to 0.24); P = 0.00). Impaired insulin processing in RA patients was detected by the onset of elevated split proinsulin levels (β, 0.70 pmol/L (0.38 to 1.02); P = 0.00). These data remained significant also when adjusted for prednisone intake (b, 0.19 (0.00 to 0.36) pmol/L; P = 0.04). Split proinsulin-to-C-peptide ratios were higher in RA patients undergoing corticosteroid therapy (b, 0.25 (0.12 to 0.38); P = 0.03) and were nearly significant in comparison between noncorticosteroids patients and controls (b, 0.16 (-0.02 to 0.34); P = 0.08). Interestingly, the impact of HOMA-IR on the ratio of intact proinsulin to C-peptide was higher in controls compared with patients (b, 6.23 (1.41 to 11.06) versus 0.43 (-0.86 to 1.71); P = 0.03). Conclusions: b-Cell function is impaired in nondiabetic and in RA patients not taking corticoids by a mechanism that seems to be, at least in part, independent of IR.This work was supported by a grant from the Fundación Española de Reumatología to I. F-A. and by a grant from the Spanish Ministry of Health (Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias) to F.D-G. [FIS 09/02209]. The authors are indebted to the entire staff of the Rheumatology Service of Hospital Universitario de Canarias and especially to Drs. Vanesa Hernández-Harnández, Esmeralda Delgado-Frias, and Maria Angeles Gantes, and to Mrs. Rodríguez-Vargas for their steadfast support

Analyzing multitarget activity landscapes using protein-ligand interaction fingerprints: interaction cliffs.

This is the original submitted version, before peer review. The final peer-reviewed version is available from ACS at http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ci500721x.Activity landscape modeling is mostly a descriptive technique that allows rationalizing continuous and discontinuous SARs. Nevertheless, the interpretation of some landscape features, especially of activity cliffs, is not straightforward. As the nature of activity cliffs depends on the ligand and the target, information regarding both should be included in the analysis. A specific way to include this information is using protein-ligand interaction fingerprints (IFPs). In this paper we report the activity landscape modeling of 507 ligand-kinase complexes (from the KLIFS database) including IFP, which facilitates the analysis and interpretation of activity cliffs. Here we introduce the structure-activity-interaction similarity (SAIS) maps that incorporate information on ligand-target contact similarity. We also introduce the concept of interaction cliffs defined as ligand-target complexes with high structural and interaction similarity but have a large potency difference of the ligands. Moreover, the information retrieved regarding the specific interaction allowed the identification of activity cliff hot spots, which help to rationalize activity cliffs from the target point of view. In general, the information provided by IFPs provides a structure-based understanding of some activity landscape features. This paper shows examples of analyses that can be carried out when IFPs are added to the activity landscape model.M-L is very grateful to CONACyT (No. 217442/312933) and the Cambridge Overseas Trust for funding. AB thanks Unilever for funding and the European Research Council for a Starting Grant (ERC-2013- StG-336159 MIXTURE). J.L.M-F. is grateful to the School of Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) for support. This work was supported by a scholarship from the Secretariat of Public Education and the Mexican government

Consenso mexicano sobre detección y tratamiento del cáncer gástrico incipiente

El cáncer gástrico representa una de las neoplasias más frecuentes en el aparato digestivo y en la mayoría de los casos es el resultado de la progresión de lesiones premalignas. La detección oportuna de estas lesiones es relevante ya que un tratamiento oportuno brinda la posibilidad de curación. En nuestro país no existía un consenso respecto a la detección temprana del cáncer gástrico, por lo que la Asociación Mexicana de Gastroenterología reunió aun grupo de expertos y realizó el Consenso sobre detección y tratamiento del cáncer gástricoincipiente (CGI) para establecer recomendaciones de utilidad para la comunidad médica. Eneste consenso se utilizó la metodología Delphi y se emitieron 38 recomendaciones al respectodel CGI. El consenso define el CGI como aquel que al momento del diagnóstico se encuentralimitado a la mucosa y a la submucosa, independientemente de metástasis en ganglios linfáticos.En México, como otras partes del mundo, los factores asociados al CGI incluyen la infección porHelicobacter pylori, los antecedentes familiares, el tabaquismo y los factores dietéticos. Para eldiagnóstico se recomienda utilizar cromoendoscopia, magnificación y equipos con luz mejorada.Un diagnóstico histopatológico preciso es invaluable para tomar de decisiones terapéuticas. Eltratamiento endoscópico del CGI, ya sea disección o resección de la mucosa, debe ser preferidoal manejo quirúrgico cuando se puedan obtener resultados semejantes en términos de curaciónoncológica. La vigilancia endoscópica se deberá de individualizar

CIBERER : Spanish national network for research on rare diseases: A highly productive collaborative initiative

Altres ajuts: Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII); Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación.CIBER (Center for Biomedical Network Research; Centro de Investigación Biomédica En Red) is a public national consortium created in 2006 under the umbrella of the Spanish National Institute of Health Carlos III (ISCIII). This innovative research structure comprises 11 different specific areas dedicated to the main public health priorities in the National Health System. CIBERER, the thematic area of CIBER focused on rare diseases (RDs) currently consists of 75 research groups belonging to universities, research centers, and hospitals of the entire country. CIBERER's mission is to be a center prioritizing and favoring collaboration and cooperation between biomedical and clinical research groups, with special emphasis on the aspects of genetic, molecular, biochemical, and cellular research of RDs. This research is the basis for providing new tools for the diagnosis and therapy of low-prevalence diseases, in line with the International Rare Diseases Research Consortium (IRDiRC) objectives, thus favoring translational research between the scientific environment of the laboratory and the clinical setting of health centers. In this article, we intend to review CIBERER's 15-year journey and summarize the main results obtained in terms of internationalization, scientific production, contributions toward the discovery of new therapies and novel genes associated to diseases, cooperation with patients' associations and many other topics related to RD research

Repositioning of the global epicentre of non-optimal cholesterol

High blood cholesterol is typically considered a feature of wealthy western countries(1,2). However, dietary and behavioural determinants of blood cholesterol are changing rapidly throughout the world(3) and countries are using lipid-lowering medications at varying rates. These changes can have distinct effects on the levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol, which have different effects on human health(4,5). However, the trends of HDL and non-HDL cholesterol levels over time have not been previously reported in a global analysis. Here we pooled 1,127 population-based studies that measured blood lipids in 102.6 million individuals aged 18 years and older to estimate trends from 1980 to 2018 in mean total, non-HDL and HDL cholesterol levels for 200 countries. Globally, there was little change in total or non-HDL cholesterol from 1980 to 2018. This was a net effect of increases in low- and middle-income countries, especially in east and southeast Asia, and decreases in high-income western countries, especially those in northwestern Europe, and in central and eastern Europe. As a result, countries with the highest level of non-HDL cholesterol-which is a marker of cardiovascular riskchanged from those in western Europe such as Belgium, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Malta in 1980 to those in Asia and the Pacific, such as Tokelau, Malaysia, The Philippines and Thailand. In 2017, high non-HDL cholesterol was responsible for an estimated 3.9 million (95% credible interval 3.7 million-4.2 million) worldwide deaths, half of which occurred in east, southeast and south Asia. The global repositioning of lipid-related risk, with non-optimal cholesterol shifting from a distinct feature of high-income countries in northwestern Europe, north America and Australasia to one that affects countries in east and southeast Asia and Oceania should motivate the use of population-based policies and personal interventions to improve nutrition and enhance access to treatment throughout the world.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

Gestión del conocimiento. Perspectiva multidisciplinaria. Volumen 9

El libro “Gestión del Conocimiento. Perspectiva Multidisciplinaria”, volumen 9, de la Colección Unión Global, es resultado de investigaciones. Los capítulos del libro, son resultados de investigaciones desarrolladas por sus autores. El libro es una publicación internacional, seriada, continua, arbitrada de acceso abierto a todas las áreas del conocimiento, que cuenta con el esfuerzo de investigadores de varios países del mundo, orientada a contribuir con procesos de gestión del conocimiento científico, tecnológico y humanístico que consoliden la transformación del conocimiento en diferentes escenarios, tanto organizacionales como universitarios, para el desarrollo de habilidades cognitivas del quehacer diario. La gestión del conocimiento es un camino para consolidar una plataforma en las empresas públicas o privadas, entidades educativas, organizaciones no gubernamentales, ya sea generando políticas para todas las jerarquías o un modelo de gestión para la administración, donde es fundamental articular el conocimiento, los trabajadores, directivos, el espacio de trabajo, hacia la creación de ambientes propicios para el desarrollo integral de las instituciones