Placement of Deontology, Legal Medicine and Sanitary Legislation Teaching in Biomedical Sciences

La docencia en deontología, medicina legal y legislación sanitaria, no puede desarrollarse con unos mínimos de calidad si no está ubicada en los últimos años de grado o licenciatura. Sus especiales connotaciones le hacen precisar de unos conocimientos previos imprescindibles para su correcto entendimiento. A su vez su importancia y repercusión en el código deontológico de cada profesional, sugieren encarecidamente su ubicación en últimos cursos. Se abordan los perjuicios derivados de la ubicación de esta materia en cursos iniciales de ciencias biomédicas, por una interpretación forzada y sesgada del libro blanco de las titulaciones, por encima de criterios de calidad docente.Deontology, legal medicine and sanitary legislation teaching, will not achieve some minimum quality levels unless it is taught within the last courses of a degree. The distinctive features of these subjects make it necessary to have some previous knowledge essential for their correct understanding. Equally, their importance and repercussion in the code of ethics of each professional, strongly suggests its location in last courses. We address the damages derived from the location of these subjects in initial courses in biomedical sciences, caused by a forced and biased interpretation of the white paper of the degrees, above any other teaching quality criteria

Heavy Metals and Trace Elements in Human Breast Milk from Industrial/Mining and Agricultural Zones of Southeastern Spain

© 2021 The authors. This document is made available under the CC-BY 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by /4.0/ This document is the published version of a published work that appeared in final form in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.Human breast milk is the most complete foodstuff for infants but can also be a potential source of exposure to toxic chemicals. The aim of this study was to assess the levels of metal pollution in the breast milk of women living in agricultural and industrial/mining areas of the Region of Murcia (Spain) that are well known for their cases of environmental pollution. Human milk samples were collected from 50 mothers and inorganic contaminants were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS). The mean or maximum concentrations of the different inorganic elements analyzed in breast milk, with the exception of manganese, exceeded the maximum limits established by the WHO and could constitute a high risk for pregnant mothers and their children. The breast milk of women living in the industrial/mining zone presented the highest levels of aluminum, zinc, arsenic, lead, mercury and nickel. On the contrary, the highest concentrations of manganese, chromium and iron were determined in the milk of women living in the agricultural zone. These results suggested and confirmed different profiles of environmental contamination of these areas

Mercury Levels in Feathers of Penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula Area: Geographical and Inter-Specific Differences

Polar regions, symbols of wilderness, have been identified as potential sinks of mercury coming from natural and anthropogenic sources at lower latitudes. Changes in ice coverage currently occurring in some areas such as the Antarctic Peninsula could enhance these phenomena and their impacts on local biota. As long-lived species at the top of food chains, seabirds are particularly sensitive to this highly toxic metal with the capacity to be biomagnified. Specifically, their feathers can be useful for Hg monitoring since they mainly accumulate its most toxic and persistent form, methyl-Hg. To that end, feathers of gentoo (Pygoscelis papua), chinstrap (P. antarcticus), and Adélie penguins (P. adeliae) (n = 108) were collected by passive sampling in seven different locations throughout the Antarctic Peninsula area and analyzed by ICP-MS after microwave-digestion. More than 93% of the samples showed detectable Hg levels (range: 6.3-12,529.8 ng g-1 dry weight), and the highest ones were found in the feathers of chinstrap penguins from King George Island. Hg bioconcentration and biomagnification seem to be occurring in the Antarctic food web, giving rise to high but non-toxic Hg levels in penguins, similar to those previously found in Arctic seabirds.This research has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation CGL2004-01348, POL2006-05175, and CGL2007-60369.S

Distribution of metals and trace elements in adult and juvenile penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula area

Fil: Jerez, Silvia. Área de Toxicología. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Murcia. Murcia; EspañaFil: Motas, Miguel. Área de Toxicología. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Murcia. Murcia; EspañaFil: Benzal, Jesús. Departamento de Ecología Funcional y Evolutiva. Estación Experimental de Zonas Árida. CSIC. Almería; EspañaFil: Díaz, Julia Inés. Centro de Estudios en Parasitología y Vectores (CEPAVE). Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Vidal, Virginia. Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Murcia. Murcia; EspañaFil: D`Amico, Verónica. Centro Nacional Patagónico (CENPAT). Puerto Madryn. Chubut; ArgentinaFil: Barbosa, Andrés. Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. CSIC. Madrid; Españ

Pollution and physiological variability in gentoo penguins at two rookeries with different levels of human visitation

Fil: Barbosa, Andres. Departamento Ecología Evolutiva. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. CSIC. Madrid; EspañaFil: De Mas, Eva. Departamento Ecología Funcional y Evolutiva. Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas. CSIC. Almeria; EsapañaFil: Benzal, Jesús. Departamento Ecología Funcional y Evolutiva. Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas. CSIC. Almeria; EsapañaFil: Díaz, Julia Inés. Centro de Estudios en Parasitología y Vectores (CEPAVE). Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Motas, Miguel. Departamento Toxicología. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Murcia. Murcia; EspañaFil: Pérez, Silvia. Departamento Toxicología. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Murcia. Murcia; EspañaFil: Pertierra, Luis. Departamento Ecología. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Madrid; EspañaFil: Benayas, Javier. Departamento Ecología. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Madrid; EspañaFil: Justel, Ana. Departamento Ecología. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Madrid; EspañaFil: Lauzurica, Pilar. Unidad de Activación Inmunológica. Centro Nacional de Microbiología. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Majadahonda; EspañaFil: García-Peña, Francisco Javier. Laboratorio Central de Veterinaria. Algete; EspañaFil: Serrano, Tania. Laboratorio Central de Veterinaria. Algete; Españ

Age-Related Differences in the Gastrointestinal Microbiota of Chinstrap Penguins (Pygoscelis antarctica)

The gastrointestinal tract microbiota is known to play very important roles in the well being of animals. It is a complex community composed by hundreds of microbial species interacting closely among them and with their host, that is, a microbial ecosystem. The development of high throughput sequencing techniques allows studying the diversity of such communities in a realistic way and considerable work has been carried out in mammals and some birds such as chickens. Wild birds have received less attention and in particular, in the case of penguins, only a few individuals of five species have been examined with molecular techniques. We collected cloacal samples from Chinstrap penguins in the Vapour Col rookery in Deception Island, Antarctica, and carried out pyrosequencing of the V1-V3 region of the 16S rDNA in samples from 53 individuals, 27 adults and 26 chicks. This provided the first description of the Chinstrap penguin gastrointestinal tract microbiota and the most extensive in any penguin species. Firmicutes, Bacteoridetes, Proteobacteria, Fusobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Tenericutes were the main components. There were large differences between chicks and adults. The former had more Firmicutes and the latter more Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria. In addition, adults had richer and more diverse bacterial communities than chicks. These differences were also observed between parents and their offspring. On the other hand, nests explained differences in bacterial communities only among chicks. We suggest that environmental factors have a higher importance than genetic factors in the microbiota composition of chicks. The results also showed surprisingly large differences in community composition with other Antarctic penguins including the congeneric Adélie and Gentoo penguins.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Whole body correction of mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA by intracerebrospinal fluid gene therapy

For most lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) affecting the CNS, there is currently no cure. The BBB, which limits the bioavailability of drugs administered systemically, and the short half-life of lysosomal enzymes, hamper the development of effective therapies. Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (MPS IIIA) is an autosomic recessive LSD caused by a deficiency in sulfamidase, a sulfatase involved in the stepwise degradation of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) heparan sulfate. Here, we demonstrate that intracerebrospinal fluid (intra-CSF) administration of serotype 9 adenoassociated viral vectors (AAV9s) encoding sulfamidase corrects both CNS and somatic pathology in MPS IIIA mice. Following vector administration, enzymatic activity increased throughout the brain and in serum, leading to whole body correction of GAG accumulation and lysosomal pathology, normalization of behavioral deficits, and prolonged survival. To test this strategy in a larger animal, we treated beagle dogs using intracisternal or intracerebroventricular delivery. Administration of sulfamidase-encoding AAV9 resulted in transgenic expression throughout the CNS and liver and increased sulfamidase activity in CSF. High-titer serum antibodies against AAV9 only partially blocked CSF-mediated gene transfer to the brains of dogs. Consistently, anti-AAV antibody titers were lower in CSF than in serum collected from healthy and MPS IIIA-affected children. These results support the clinical translation of this approach for the treatment of MPS IIIA and other LSDs with CNS involvement

Seabird ticks (<i>Ixodes uriae</i>) distribution along the Antarctic Peninsula

The distribution of the tick Ixodes uriae is studied in the South Shetlands and different locations along the Antarctic Peninsula. Ticks were found beneath stones close to penguin rookeries of chinstrap, gentoo and adelie penguin, although no individuals were found parasitized. Our results showed that ticks are not distributed evenly along the Antarctic Peninsula being more common and abundant in the northern part with relative abundances of ticks ranging from 1 to 57 individuals per stone and from 2 to 26% of the stone inspected. Ticks are probably absent in the south.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Pollution and physiological variability in gentoo penguins at two rookeries with different levels of human visitation

Human activity and specifically tourism has been increasing in Antarctica over the last few years. Few studies have examined the indirect effects of human visits on Antarctic penguin rookeries. This work aims to study the differences between a highly visited (Hannah Point) and a rarely visited (Devil's Point, Byers Peninsula) gentoo penguin rookery on Livingston Island. Our results suggest that potential indirect effects of human impact are observed in gentoo penguins at Hannah Point, a colony heavily visited by tourists. Penguins at Hannah Point showed a higher presence of heavy metals such as Pb and Ni and a higher number of erythrocytic nuclear abnormalities than penguins at Devil's Point. Immunological parameters showed different results depending on whether we consider the cellular response -the number of lymphocytes being higher in penguins from Hannah Point- or the humoral response -the level of immunoglobulins being higher in penguins from Devil's Point. Measurements of corticosterone levels in feathers and heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratio in blood showed lower levels in the heavily visited rookery than in the rarely visited rookery. Finally, we did not detect Campylobacter jejuni, a bacteria potentially transmitted by humans in either of the populations and we did not find any difference in the prevalence of Campylobacter lari between the populations.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Whole body correction of mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA by intracerebrospinal fluid gene therapy

For most lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) affecting the CNS, there is currently no cure. The BBB, which limits the bioavailability of drugs administered systemically, and the short half-life of lysosomal enzymes, hamper the development of effective therapies. Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (MPS IIIA) is an autosomic recessive LSD caused by a deficiency in sulfamidase, a sulfatase involved in the stepwise degradation of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) heparan sulfate. Here, we demonstrate that intracerebrospinal fluid (intra-CSF) administration of serotype 9 adenoassociated viral vectors (AAV9s) encoding sulfamidase corrects both CNS and somatic pathology in MPS IIIA mice. Following vector administration, enzymatic activity increased throughout the brain and in serum, leading to whole body correction of GAG accumulation and lysosomal pathology, normalization of behavioral deficits, and prolonged survival. To test this strategy in a larger animal, we treated beagle dogs using intracisternal or intracerebroventricular delivery. Administration of sulfamidase-encoding AAV9 resulted in transgenic expression throughout the CNS and liver and increased sulfamidase activity in CSF. High-titer serum antibodies against AAV9 only partially blocked CSF-mediated gene transfer to the brains of dogs. Consistently, anti-AAV antibody titers were lower in CSF than in serum collected from healthy and MPS IIIA-affected children. These results support the clinical translation of this approach for the treatment of MPS IIIA and other LSDs with CNS involvement