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The presence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was examined over 7 months in a population of essential service workers exposed during the first epidemic wave in Madrid (Spain). Results obtained with different serological assays were compared. Firstly, serum samples obtained in April 2020 were analyzed using eleven SARS-CoV-2 antibody detection methods, including seven ELISAs, two CLIAs and two LFAs. While all of the ELISA tests and the Roche eCLIA method showed good performance, it was poorer for the Abbott CLIA and LFA tests. Sera from 115 workers with serologically positive results in April were collected 2 and 7 months after the first sampling and were analyzed using five of the tests previously assessed. The results showed that while some ELISA tests consistently detected the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies even 7 months after first detection, other methods, such as the Abbott CLIA test, showed an important reduction in sensitivity for these mature antibodies. The sensitivity increased after establishing new cut-off values, calculated taking into account both recent and old infections, suggesting that an adjustment of assay parameters may improve the detection of individuals exposed to the infection.

The introduction of invasive species into an ecosystem could result in biodiversity loss and the spread of infectious agents that could cause re-emergent or emergent zoonotic diseases. Monk parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus) and rose-ringed parakeets (Psittacula krameri) are considered widespread invasive exotic species in urban habitats from the Iberian Peninsula. The aim of this study was to assess the presence of relevant infectious agents in wild parakeets captured in urban parks in Madrid and Seville (Spain).

The formation of vapor bubbles in a metastable liquid, cavitation, is an activated process due to the free energy cost of having both phases at contact. Such an energetic penalty enables the existence of the liquid beyond its thermodynamic borders. Establishing the stability limits of a liquid as ubiquitous as water has important practical implications and has thereby attracted a lot of attention. Different experimental strategies and theoretical analyses have been employed to measure and predict the cavitation line, or the pressure-temperature kinetic stability border of liquid water. Understanding the location of the cavitation line requires knowing the cavitation rate dependence on pressure and temperature. Such dependency is difficult to obtain in experiments, and we use molecular simulations with the TIP4P/2005 model to fill this gap. By deeply overstretching liquid water below the saturation pressure, we are able to observe and quantify spontaneous cavitation. To deal with a lower overstretching regime, we resort to the Seeding technique, which consists of analyzing simulations of a liquid containing a vapor bubble under the theoretical framework of Classical Nucleation Theory. Combining spontaneous cavitation with Seeding, we get a wide overview of the cavitation rate. We study two different temperatures (450 and 550 K) and complement our perspective with the results previously obtained at 296.4 K [Menzl et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 113, 13582 (2016)] to establish a broad simulation-experiment comparison. We find a good agreement between simulations and both isobaric heating and isochoric cooling experiments using quartz inclusions. We are, however, unable to reconcile simulations with other experimental techniques. Our results predict a decrease in the solid-liquid interfacial free energy as the liquid becomes increasingly overstretched with a temperature independent Tolman length of 0.1 nm. Therefore, the capillarity approximation underestimates the nucle

The propensity to develop neurodegenerative diseases is influenced by diverse factors including genetic background, sex, lifestyle, including dietary habits and being overweight, and age. Indeed, with aging, there is an increased incidence of obesity and neurodegenerative processes, both of which are associated with inflammatory responses, in a sex-specific manner. High fat diet (HFD) commonly leads to obesity and markedly affects metabolism, both peripherally and centrally. Here we analyzed the metabolic and inflammatory responses of middle-aged (11-12 months old) transgenic amyloid precursor protein (TgAPP) mice of both sexes to HFD for 18 weeks (starting at 7-8 months of age). We found clear sex differences with females gaining significantly more weight and fat mass than males, with a larger increase in circulating leptin levels and expression of inflammatory markers in visceral adipose tissue. Glycemia and insulin levels increased in HFD fed mice of both sexes, with TgAPP mice being more affected than wild type (WT) mice. In the hypothalamus, murine amyloid ß (Aß) levels were increased by HFD intake exclusively in males, reaching statistical significance in TgAPP males. On a low fat diet (LFD), TgAPP males had significantly lower mRNA levels of the anorexigenic neuropeptide proopiomelanocortin (POMC) than WT males, with HFD intake decreasing the expression of the orexigenic neuropeptides Agouti-related peptide (AgRP) and neuropeptide Y (NPY), especially in TgAPP mice. In females, HFD increased POMC mRNA levels but had no effect on AgRP or NPY mRNA levels, and with no effect on genotype. There was no effect of diet or genotype on the hypothalamic inflammatory markers analyzed or the astrogliosis marker glial acidic protein (GFAP); however, levels of the microglial marker Iba-1 increased selectively in male TgAPP mice. In summary, the response to HFD intake was significantly affected by sex, with fewer effects due to genotype. Hypothalamic inflammatory cytokine ex

This article focuses on the concept idea of ‘human rights city’ and explores its practice. It starts from the concepts of human rights cities and subsidiarity to explain what a human rights city is and delves into the existing literature identifying the challenges to guarantee human rights in local contexts, such as the legal framework, education and training, the institutional structure, and the resources. Our article is based on an empirical-based study of Madrid Human Rights Plan (2017–2019). We carried out semi-structured interviews, focus group, and participant observation to grasp the obstacles that civil servants encounter in the implementation of the Plan. We identify five types of obstacles that we classify as conceptual, ideological, legal, organisational, and budgetary. Our study questions the idea that the local context, just because of its proximity to the citizenry, is the best equipped level of government to guarantee human rights. Without proper training and resources human rights can be lost in translation. Through the identification of such obstacles in a specific case study, we contribute to the academic debate on human rights in practice with the aim of fostering its guarantee in local contexts.

NaCl aqueous solutions are ubiquitous. They can crystallize into ice, NaCl, or NaCl · 2H2O depending on the temperature-concentration conditions. These crystallization transitions have important implications in geology, cryopreservation, or atmospheric science. Computer simulations can help understand the crystallization of these solids, which requires a detailed knowledge of the equilibrium phase diagram. We use molecular simulations in which we put at contact the solution with the solid of interest to determine points of the solid-solution coexistence lines. We follow two different approaches, one in which we narrow down the melting temperature for a given concentration and the other in which we equilibrate the concentration for a given temperature, obtaining consistent results. The phase diagram thus calculated for the selected model (TIP4P/2005 for water molecules and Joung-Cheatham for the ions) correctly predicts coexistence between the solution and ice. We were only able to determine NaCl · 2H2O-solution coexistence points at higher temperatures and concentrations than in the experiment, so we could not establish a direct comparison in this case. On the other hand, the model underestimates the concentration of the solution in equilibrium with the NaCl solid. Our results, alongside other literature evidence, seem to indicate that ion-ion interactions are too strong in the model. Our work is a good starting point for the improvement of the potential model and for the study of the nucleation kinetics of the solid phases involved in the phase diagram.

Salt aqueous solutions are relevant in many fields, ranging from biological systems to seawater. Thus, the availability of a force-field that is able to reproduce the thermodynamic and dynamic behavior of salt aqueous solutions would be of great interest. Unfortunately, this has been proven challenging, and most of the existing force-fields fail to reproduce much of their behavior. In particular, the diffusion of water or the salt solubility are often not well reproduced by most of the existing force-fields. Recently, the Madrid-2019 model was proposed, and it was shown that this force-field, which uses the TIP4P/2005 model for water and non-integer charges for the ions, provides a good description of a large number of properties, including the solution densities, viscosities, and the diffusion of water. In this work, we assess the performance of this force-field on the evaluation of the freezing point depression. Although the freezing point depression is a colligative property that at low salt concentrations depends solely on properties of pure water, a good model for the electrolytes is needed to accurately predict the freezing point depression at moderate and high salt concentrations. The coexistence line between ice and several salt aqueous solutions (NaCl, KCl, LiCl, MgCl2, and Li2SO4) up to the eutectic point is estimated from direct coexistence molecular dynamics simulations. Our results show that this force-field reproduces fairly well the experimentally measured freezing point depression with respect to pure water freezing for all the salts and at all the compositions considered.

Objectives To study prevalence of infection in essential workers of Madrid City Council by occupation, related characteristics, use of protective devices, risk perception, and main concerns about COVID-19 during lockdown. Methods A total of 30 231 workers were PCR tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Information was collected on COVID-19-related symptoms, risk factors, preventive equipment, and risk perception. The crude prevalence was calculated for infection, use of protective devices, perceived risk and main concerns. Additionally, adjusted prevalence and prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated for these variables using logistic regression models with age, gender, occupation, epidemiological week and laboratory as confounding factors. Results Overall prevalence of infection was 3.2% (95% CI 3.0% to 3.4%), being higher among policemen (4.4%) and bus drivers (4.2%), but lower among emergency healthcare personnel, firefighters, food market workers and burial services (<2%). Lower excess risk was observed in workers reporting occupational contact with COVID-19 cases only (PR=1.42; 95%CI 1.18 to 1.71) compared with household exposure only (PR=2.75; 95%CI 2.32 to 3.25). Infection was more frequent in symptomatic workers (PR=1.28; 95%CI 1.11 to 1.48), although 42% of detected infections were asymptomatic. Use of facial masks (78.7%) and disinfectants (86.3%) was common and associated with lower infection prevalence (PRmasks=0.68; 95%CI 0.58 to 0.79; PRdisinfectants=0.75; 95%CI 0.61 to 0.91). Over 50% of workers felt being at high risk of infection and worried about infecting others, yet only 2% considered quitting their work. Conclusions This surveillance system allowed for detecting and isolating SARS-CoV-2 cases among essential workers, identifying characteristics related to infection and use of protective devices, and revealing specific needs for work-safety information and psychological support.

El objetivo del presente trabajo es analizar cómo los riesgos en la salud asociados a los eventos térmicos extremos se ven modificados por sexo y factores socioeconómicos y demográficos. Empleando la regresión de Poisson se calcularon los riesgos de morbimortalidad asociados a las olas de calor y frío. Se utilizó como variable dependiente la mortalidad diaria e ingresos hospitalarios urgentes, por causas naturales (CIE-X: A00-R99), circulatorias (CIE-X: I00-I99) y respiratorias (CIE-X: J00-J99) procedentes del INE y Madrid Salud. AEMET suministró datos de temperatura mínima (Tmin) y máxima diaria (Tmax) y humedad relativa media diaria del observatorio de Madrid Retiro. Como variable independiente se determinó el número de días con olas de calor y frío, definidas por el umbral de temperatura a partir del cual se dispara la mortalidad. Se controló por periodo, tendencia y contaminación. Con estos modelos, se calcularon los Riesgos Relativos (RR) y Atribuibles (RA) asociados a las variables estadísticamente significativas (p<0,05). Los resultados a nivel inframunicipal fueron cruzados con el porcentaje de población en riesgo –mayores de 65 años–, renta familiar media, acceso a aire acondicionado y calefacción y zonas verdes en el distrito. Como resultados, el RA de la ola de frío (13,5 % (IC 95 %: 7,8 - 19,0) es superior al de la ola de calor (3,1 % (IC 95 %: 0,1 - 5,9)). El patrón de ingresos apunta a que las mujeres son más vulnerables que los hombres en invierno y verano. El análisis a nivel de distrito revela que los factores más determinantes son el nivel de renta del hogar y los sistemas de climatización más que la población en riesgo., The purpose of this work is to analyse how the health risks linked to extreme heat events are modified by gender and socioeconomical or demographic factors. The risks of Heat Waves (HW) and Cold Spells (CS) were calculated using the Poisson regression at city and district level. The dependant variables were the data for mortality and urgent hospital admissions due to natural (CIE X: A00-R99), circulatory (CIE X: I00-I99), and respiratory causes (CIE X: J00-J99) from INE and Madrid Salud. AEMET provided daily minimum (Tmin) and maximum (Tmax) temperature data as well as relative humidity data. HWs and CSs - the independent variables - were calculated as the temperature threshold above which mortality rates increases dramatically. The models were controlled by period, trend, and daily mean levels of PM2.5, PM10, NO2 and ozone. With these models, the Relative Risk (RR) and Attributable Risk (AR) associated with the statistically significant variables (p-value < 0.05) were calculated. The results at the district level were compared with the percentage of vulnerable people – aged 65 and older –, average household income, access to HVAC systems and the green areas in the district. Results: the CS-related AR [13.5 % (7.8 - 19.0)] was higher than the HW-related AR [3.1 (0.1- 5.9)]. The admissions pattern shows than women are more vulnerable than men during the winter and the summer. The analysis at the district level reveals that household income level and owning HVAC systems could be more relevant than the number of people at risk., O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar, de que modo, os riscos para a saúde associados a eventos térmicos extremos são modificados por fatores de género, socioeconómicos e demográficos. Utilizando a regressão de Poisson, foram calculados os riscos de morbimortalidade associados às ondas de calor e frio. Foram utilizadas como variáveis dependentes, a mortalidade diária e as admissões hospitalares urgentes, por causas naturais (CIE-X: A00-R99), circulatórias (CIE-X: I00-I99) e respiratórias (CIE-X: J00-J99) provenientes do INE e Madrid Salud. A AEMET forneceu dados sobre a temperatura mínima (Tmin) e máxima diária (Tmax) e a humidade relativa média diária do observatório Madrid Retiro. Como variável independente, foi determinado o número de dias com ondas de calor e frio, definido pelo limiar de temperatura, a partir do qual há um aumento da mortalidade. Por período, foi controlada a tendência e a contaminação. Com estes modelos foram calculados o Risco Relativo (RR) e o Risco Atribuível (RA) associados às variáveis estatisticamente significativas (p < 0,05). Os resultados a nível inframunicipal foram cruzados com a percentagem da população de risco - mais de 65 anos, com o rendimento médio das famílias, com o acesso a ar condicionado e aquecimento e com as zonas verdes do distrito. Como resultados, verifica-se que o RA à vaga de frio (13,5 % (IC 95 %: 7,8 - 19,0) é superior ao da vaga de calor (3,1 % (IC 95 %: 0,1 - 5,9)). O padrão de admissões sugere que as mulheres são mais vulneráveis do que os homens no Inverno e no Verão. A análise a nível distrital revela que os fatores mais determinantes são o nível de rendimento dos agregados familiares e os sistemas de climatização, mais do que a população de risco.

Nanopore sequencing has emerged as a rapid and cost-efficient tool for diagnostic and epidemiological surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study compared the results from sequencing the SARS-CoV-2 genome using R9 vs R10 flow cells and a Rapid Barcoding Kit (RBK) vs a Ligation Sequencing Kit (LSK). The R9 chemistry provided a lower error rate (3.5%) than R10 chemistry (7%). The SARS-CoV-2 genome includes few homopolymeric regions. Longest homopolymers were composed of 7 (TTTTTTT) and 6 (AAAAAA) nucleotides. The R10 chemistry resulted in a lower rate of deletions in thymine and adenine homopolymeric regions than the R9, at the expenses of a larger rate (~10%) of mismatches in these regions. The LSK had a larger yield than the RBK, and provided longer reads than the RBK. It also resulted in a larger percentage of aligned reads (99 vs 93%) and also in a complete consensus genome. The results from this study suggest that the LSK preparation library provided longer DNA fragments which contributed to a better assembly of the SARS-CoV-2, despite an impaired detection of variants in a R10 flow cell. Nanopore sequencing could be used in epidemiological surveillance of SARS-CoV-2. KEY POINTS: • Sequencing SARS-CoV-2 genome is of great importance for the pandemic surveillance. • Nanopore offers a low cost and accurate method to sequence SARS-CoV-2 genome. • Ligation sequencing is preferred rather than the rapid kit using transposases.

The seeding method is an approximate approach to investigate nucleation that combines molecular dynamics simulations with classical nucleation theory. Recently, this technique has been successfully implemented in a broad range of nucleation studies. However, its accuracy is subject to the arbitrary choice of the order parameter threshold used to distinguish liquid-like from solid-like molecules. We revisit here the crystallization of NaCl from a supersaturated brine solution and show that consistency between seeding and rigorous methods, like Forward Flux Sampling (from previous work) or spontaneous crystallization (from this work), is achieved by following a mislabelling criterion to select such threshold (i.e. equaling the fraction of the mislabelled particles in the bulk parent and nucleating phases). This work supports the use of seeding to obtain fast and reasonably accurate nucleation rate estimates and the mislabelling criterion as one giving the relevant cluster size for classical nucleation theory in crystallization studies.

Se presentan los procedimientos de vigilancia y control diseñados e implementados por los servicios municipales de control de plagas del Ayuntamiento de Madrid, ante la comunicación de un foco privado de una cucaracha exótica, Periplaneta australasiae (Fabricius, 1775), en la ciudad en abril de 2018. La exhaustiva monitorización llevada a cabo en áreas públicas de titularidad municipal, ha permitido la captura de una hembra adulta de la especie en un pozo de alcantarillado en el período comprendido entre mayo y septiembre 2018 en el que se desarrolló el estudio. Los resultados de los tratamientos de control efectuados, la importancia de la colaboración público-privada en la gestión de la especie y la discusión acerca de las posibles dificultades que pueda encontrar el insecto para colonizar y expandirse a gran escala a través de la red de alcantarillado municipal a tenor de las variables ambientales recopiladas y analizadas de estos enclaves del subsuelo de la ciudad, se discuten con detalle en el artículo., After the presence of the exotic Australian cockroach species Periplaneta australasiae (Fabricius, 1775) was detected in a private building in Madrid and reported in April 2018, the city council’s pest control services designed and implemented a comprehensive surveillance and control program to identify potentially infested public areas and eradicate the species in the said areas.The exhaustive monitoring carried out in public areas under city management led to the capture of an adult P. australasiae female inside a sewer manhole during the study period (May-September 2018).This paper discusses in detail the results of the pest control treatments that have been carried out, the significance of public-private collaboration for properly managing this species, and the difficulties this insect may encounter in colonizing and expanding widely throughout the municipal sewer system based on the analysis of the values of various environmental variables that were measured at these locations of the city’s underground., Apresentam-se os procedimentos de vigilância e controlo desenhados e implementados pelos serviços municipais de controlo de pragas do Município de Madrid, face à comunicação de um foco infestante de uma barata exótica, Periplaneta australasiae (Fabricius, 1775), na cidade em abril de 2018. A exaustiva monitorização levada a cabo em áreas públicas de domínio municipal, permitiram a captura de uma fêmea adulta da espécie numa caixa de visita do sistema de drenagem de águas residuais, no período em que se desenvolveu o estudo, compreendido entre maio e setembro de 2018. São discutidos em detalhe neste artigo os resultados dos procedimentos de controlo efetuados, a importância da colaboração público-privada na gestão da espécie e a discussão sobre as possíveis dificuldades que o inseto pode encontrar para colonizar e expandir em larga escala através da rede municipal de esgotos de acordo com as variáveis ambientais, recolhidas e analisadas, nesses enclaves do subsolo da cidade.

[Hypothesis]: Superparamagnetic MnxFe3-xO4 nanoparticles are promising materials for applications in biomedicine and other fields. Small variations in the Mn/Fe ratio have a strong impact on the properties of the nanoparticles. Those variations may be caused by the synthesis itself and by common post-synthesis manipulations like surface modification., [Experiments]: Mn-ferrite nanoparticles have been prepared changing systematically the Mn/Fe ratio of the metal precursors and repeating each reaction three times. Nanoparticles were subjected to surface modification with two different and typical molecules to stabilize them in aqueous media. The discrepancy in the Mn/Fe ratios of the precursors with the ones measured after the synthesis and the surface modification have been studied, as well as its impact on the saturation magnetization, blocking temperature, contrast enhancement for magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic heating, and on the cytotoxicity., [Findings]: Mn is incorporated in the nanoparticles in a relatively lower amount than Fe and, as this report shows for the first time, both Mn and Fe ions leach out from the nanoparticles during the surface modification step. The blocking temperature decreases exponentially as the Mn/Fe ratio increases. The transverse and longitudinal relaxation times and the magnetic heating ability change appreciably even with small variations in the composition.

Declaració institucional elaborada en el context de confinament davant l’emergència provocada per la COVID-19., Institutional statement prepared in the context of confinement to the emergency caused by COVID-19., Declaración institucional elaborada en el contexto de confinamiento ante la emergencia provocada por la COVID-19.

One strategy to re-use solid urban wastes is the production of energy by anaerobic digestion. This process also generates high volume of digestates, which are frequently disposal in landfills. The aim of this work is to assess anaerobic digestates as agricultural inputs. Three different biomethanation wastes from different plants were collected. Firstly, a complete physico-chemical characterization of the wastes was done according to the Spanish regulation, showing that the materials had the 90% of the particles below 25 mm, high values of pH, electric conductivity, organic matter, humic acids and soluble nutrients such as NO3−, SO42−, Ca2+, Mg2+, PO43− and K+. Total concentrations of heavy metals and microbiological parameters were below the threshold levels allowed for agricultural use. The wastes were then treated with a strong acid and a strong base having two different solutions (ATr and BTr, respectively) which were evaluated as biostimulants for tomato plants in hydroponic culture. Those liquid extracts, ATr and BTr, demonstrated their biostimulant ability towards root system of tomato enhancing the hair root density and plant biometric parameters including plants weight and chlorophyll content. This work demonstrates the re-use feasibility of treated digestates in agriculture as fertilizers and more over as feedstock for biostimulants production.

Tercer premi, Postprint (published version)

La situación actual del acuífero detrítico de Madrid es bastante conflictiva. La Confederación Hidrográfica del Tajo parece estar siguiendo una política consistente en clausurar, ante el más mínimo cambio y sin una justificación en profundidad, las captaciones privadas existentes, exigiendo que se surtan con aguas de la compañía pública Canal de Isabel II. Esto puede suponer a los actuales usuarios un importante aumento del precio del agua, debido a la notable diferencia que existe entre el coste total de utilización del agua subterránea y el del agua del Canal de Isabel II. Por otra parte, según el Plan Hidrológico de la demarcación hidrográfica del Tajo aprobado, el volumen actual de extracción por bombeo de este acuífero está aparentemente por debajo de la recarga natural. Un grupo de usuarios de aguas subterráneas de este acuífero, ha iniciado la constitución de una Asociación. Para ello, cuenta con el asesoramiento de la Asociación Española de Usuarios de Aguas Subterráneas (AEUAS), que agrupa unas veinte asociaciones de este tipo repartidas por toda España. La primera de todas fue la Asociación Catalana de Usuarios de Aguas Subterráneas, de la que forma parte, entre otras, la Comunidad de Usuarios de Aguas Subterráneas del Delta del río Llobregat, que fue formalmente aprobada en 1976, es decir, antes de la Ley de Aguas de 1985. Esta asociación nació como una defensa de los particulares frente a la Administración Estatal del Agua, pero la situación actual ha cambiado sensiblemente. Hoy su principal cometido es velar por la buena gestión del acuífero del que se bombean unos 45 hm3/año. Sus relaciones con la Administración son muy positivas: el Secretario General de la AEUAS forma parte, por invitación, del Consejo Nacional del Agua. El acuífero detrítico de Madrid es bastante más grande que el del Llobregat: se extiende más allá de los límites de la Comunidad de Madrid. El Plan Hidrológico de la cuenca, señala unas extracciones de 57 hm3/año, sobre un total de 1

El análisis histórico de la gestión de las aguas subterráneas en España desde la década de 1950 permite identificar sus fortalezas y debilidades en el área del crecimiento económico y de la gobernanza. Las sucesivas crisis del agua ocurridas en España desde el comienzo de la segunda mitad del siglo XX, así como las lecciones aprendidas en las mismas, permiten hacer un análisis sobre el estado de la gestión del agua. Aquí se sintetizan los principales aspectos que han configurado la situación de la Ley de Aguas de 1985 y la implementación de la Directiva Marco del Agua en España. Se lleva a cabo una revisión de los principales ejes estructurales de la política de aguas actual, prestando especial atención a los aspectos de la gobernanza del agua, con particular énfasis en las aguas subterráneas. Por un lado se destaca la divergencia entre el uso de las aguas subterráneas en España y las decisiones de los gestores, que no las consideran sino que favorecen otros recursos de agua, tradicionalmente las aguas superficiales y más recientemente las llamadas aguas industriales (desalinización de agua del mar y la regeneración de aguas usadas). Por otro lado, se comenta el hándicap que supone el hecho de que, en teoría, las aguas subterráneas son de dominio público mientras buena parte de ellas permanece en manos privadas. Aunque se han hecho mejoras, la gestión de las aguas subterráneas es todavía caótica en algunos aspectos. Las aguas subterráneas continúan siendo la fase invisible del ciclo del agua en el ámbito de la gestión, a pesar de la relevancia que tienen para los abastecimientos urbanos y para la agricultura, especialmente a lo largo de la costa Mediterránea, sur y centro de la Península y en las islas. Se consideran algunos aspectos significativos de la política del agua subterránea en España, tales como su papel para mitigar los efectos de la variabilidad y cambios del clima, su uso minero, las asociaciones de usuarios y los ecosistemas dependientes de las aguas s

Las salinas litorales de la provincia de Alicante son unos ecosistemas singulares cuya morfología ha sido modificada por el hombre para facilitar la explotación salinera. En este artículo se van a estudiar las salinas de Santa Pola, de La Mata y de Torrevieja, que pueden considerarse las más importantes de la provincia alicantina al estar declaradas como Parque Natural. De cada una de ellas se realiza un análisis descriptivo de las características geológicas de su entorno, de su funcionamiento hídrico, así como de la hidroquímica de sus aguas en distintas estaciones, desde otoño de 2011 a otoño de 2012; se han analizado los iones mayoritarios, el pH y la conductividad eléctrica. En el periodo de tiempo al que nos referimos, no se ha apreciado una tendencia paralela en la variación de la composición química de sus aguas en función de las distintas estaciones consideradas.

La gestión de avisos por plagas es un componente habitual de los programas de control de plagas en una ciudad por lo que los gestores municipales de estas actividades normalmente desarrollan procedimientos para la captación, la atención y la explotación de los datos resultantes, lo que ayuda con otras actuaciones en paralelo, a mejorar la calidad de la Salud Pública.El estudio que aquí presentamos aborda la metodología diseñada y puesta en funcionamiento por el Ayuntamiento de Madrid para controlar y gestionar la presencia de plagas en la ciudad. La larga experiencia (más de 100 años) del Ayuntamiento y su apuesta por la incorporación de tecnologías novedosas en el control y gestión de plagas, ha permitido extraer una serie de lecciones aprendidas que pretende servir de guía y modelo para ciudades en donde los servicios de salud pública no hayan aun incorporado estos métodos., Citizens’ reports of sightings of undesirable animals are a common component of pest control programmes in a city. For this reason, local authorities tend to develop procedures for the capture and analysis of the resulting data sets based on these reported sightings. These procedures in turn contribute to the development of other initiatives aimed at improving public health conditions. The study presented here focuses on the methodology designed and implemented by the Madrid City Council for controlling and managing the presence of urban pests.The long experience (over 100 years) of the City Council and its commitment to the incorporation of new technologies have allowed a number of important lessons to be learnt in pest control and management, which may be useful as a guide and model for cities where public health services have not yet incorporated these methods., Os anúncios para a gestão de pragas é um componente comum nos programas de controlo de pragas nas cidades, por isso, os gestores municipais dessas atividades costumam desenvolver procedimentos para a coleta, cuidado e exploração dos dados obtidos, o que ajuda com outras ações em paralelo, a melhorar a qualidade da saúde pública.No presente estudo apresentamos a metodologia desenvolvida e posta em operação pela Câmara Municipal de Madrid para o controlo e gestão da presença de pragas na cidade. A Câmara Municipal de Madrid com a incorporação de novas tecnologias para o controlo e gestão de pragas, permitiu chegar a uma série de lições aprendidas que poderão ser de guia e modelo para as cidades onde os serviços de saúde pública ainda não incorporaram esses métodos de gestão de pragas.

[ES] El nuevo empleo industrial puede ser considerado como un indicador privilegiado de las mutaciones socioeconómicas y espaciales que afectan a ciudades región como Madrid; desde aquellas de carácter estructural en la nueva fase de desarrollo capitalista hasta cambios específicos en el mercado de trabajo o hasta nuevas formas de desigualdad entre territorios, visible a todas las escalas. Así, el análisis de fuentes estadísticas convencionales (EPA, Seguridad Social…) ha permitido reinterpretar la caída del empleo industrial no en clave de desindustrialización generalizada, sino de transformación del significado y características de la actividad industrial, en relación sobre todo con la capacidad de arrastre sobre los servicios avanzados, clave en la nueva economía. Más allá de la cantidad, la calidad y el contenido del nuevo empleo industrial, aproximados a través de la estadística de contratos del Ayuntamiento de Madrid, confirman la contribución de la industria a la calidad del empleo, el intenso proceso de terciarización, visible en el tipo de ocupaciones y niveles formativos, así como una nueva lógica espacial., [EN] The new industrial employment can be considered as a privileged indicator of the spatial and socioeconomic mutations that affect to city-regions as Madrid. Since those of structural character in the new phase of capitalist development, to specific changes in the labour market, or new forms of inequality among territories visible to all scales. Thus, the analysis of conventional statistical sources (EPA, Social Security…) has allowed reinterpreting the fall of the industrial employment not in terms of general deindustrialization, but of transformation of the meaning and characteristics of the industrial activity, in relation with the capacity of pulling from advanced services considered strategic in the new economy. Beyond the quantity, the quality and the content of the new industrial employment, approximated through the statistics of contracts of the City Hall of Madrid, confirm the contribution of the industry to the quality of the employment, the intense process of tertiarization, visible in the type of occupations and formative levels, as well as a new spatial logic.

In 1983, after devoting some eight years of his life to the description of how a nematode worm develops from an embryo into an adult, molecular biologist John Sulston embarked on a remarkably different project: he decided to map the worm’s genome. Sulston’s impulsive desire to characterise this creature’s DNA from start to finish offers only a partial explanation for this transition. Instead, a close examination of the wider social context for this ‘moment’ in molecular biology gives a more rewarding explanation of Sulston’s intellectual leap. This reveals a world in which biotechnology gradually adapted to and integrated into an ‘information society’ increasingly dependent on the creation, distribution and manipulation of information. The application of computing to DNA during the first half of the 1980s was crucial for this integration, fostering the emergence of genomics and ultimately the Human Genome Project.

Research on the costs of nest reuse is central to understanding the population ecology and evolution of cavity-nesting birds. We explored the consequences of nest reuse by offering blue tits three types of nestboxes in which to breed: nestboxes with an old nest (O), empty nestboxes (E) and nestboxes with an old nest fumigated with insecticide (F). The experimental groups differed in ectoparasitism level: the O nestboxes had the most and the F nestboxes the fewest ectoparasites. Blue tits using nestboxes that contained old nests from the previous season paid a cost caused by the presence of nest ectoparasites: both reproductive success and female body mass at the end of the nestling period were reduced. Haematozoan infections in females also increased with the level of ectoparasitism. The costs of nest reuse would be reduced in areas and/or seasons with few ectoparasites, as shown by the results from the group with fumigated old nests. © 2007 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

1. Very few studies to date have evaluated experimentally the effects of blood parasites on physiological variables and breeding performance in wild birds. In this study, blood parasitaemias of female Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus L. were experimentally manipulated to assess subsequent changes in immunoglobulin level and parental effort during reproduction. 2. At the beginning of the nestling period, female Blue Tits were medicated with a high dose (HD) or a low dose (LD) of the antimalarial Primaquine, or with saline solution (control). Treatment with Primaquine causes a reduction in blood parasitaemias in the study population. 3. Immunoglobulin levels decreased in females from the HD group during the experimental period (10 days), while the levels increased in control females. 4. Only females in the HD group increased significantly their provisioning rates from the early to the late nestling stage. Total (male and female) provisioning rates increased significantly for the HD and LD groups, but not for the control group. 5. Nestlings reared by control females suffered a higher infestation by the ectoparasitic blowfly Protocalliphora azurea (Fallén). 6. Medication and the associated decrease in immunoglobulin levels allow females to allocate more resources towards parental effort. In addition, there is a potential link of medication with the health of the nestlings. 7. This study gives indirect support to the trade-off between reproductive effort and immune defence in avian hosts, and sheds light on the evolutionary significance of the link between parasitism, immunity, life-history decisions and fitness. © 2006 The Authors.

[ES] El 26 de junio de 2000, durante la presentación del primer borrador del Proyecto Genoma Humano, el entonces presidente de los Estados Unidos, Bill Clinton, afirmó que "hoy estamos aprendiendo el lenguaje en el que Dios creó la vida". Detrás de sus palabras se escondía una historia de más de medio siglo basada en el entendimiento del ADN como información. Mi artículo analiza esta historia, abordando los orígenes de la visión informacional de nuestros genes a principios de los 50, cómo esta visión afectó las investigaciones en el código genético (años 50 y 60) y la transformación de la idea de información genética en el contexto de las primeras técnicas de secuenciación de ADN y de la bioinformática (años 80 y 90). Propongo que el concepto de ADN como información alcanzó un climax con el planteamiento del Proyecto Genoma Humano, pero actualmente afronta una crisis que coincide con el cuestionamiento de la idea de sociedad de la información. Finalmente, analizo el desarrollo de la biología de sistemas como paradigma alternativo., [EN] On 26 June 2000, during the presentation of the Human Genome Project’s first draft, Bill Clinton, then President of the United States, claimed that “today we are learning the language in which God created life”.1 Behind his remarks lay a story of more than half a century involving the understanding of DNA as information. This paper analyses that story, discussing the origins of the informational view of our genes during the early 1950s, how such a view affected the research on the genetic code (1950s and ‘60s) and the transformation of the information idea in the context of DNA sequencing and bioinformatics (‘80s and ‘90s). I suggest that the concept of DNA as information reached a climax with the proposal of the Human Genome Project (HGP), but is currently facing a crisis coinciding with the questioning of the information society. Finally, I discuss the emergence of systems biology as an alternative paradigm.

Acompañado de: Animal de mediodía / Pablo Jauralde Pou y Pablo Moíño Sánchez (157 p.), Edición especial en piel, con grabados originales, Guardado en estuche

Sel·leccionat, Postprint (published version)

The blood stress protein response can be used to evaluate physiological or environmental stress in individuals and populations. It is important that sample conservation and transport are correct to avoid confounding effects on protein analyses. We show that Great Tit (Parus major) blood samples can be centrifuged and frozen any time within eight hours of collection, as during this period there are no significant changes in stress protein HSP70 and HSP60 levels. These findings simplify future research on the stress protein response in wild birds because samples can be safely kept in a cool box for a relatively long time.

En este trabajo se presenta un estudio exploratorio sobre las características psicométricas de un instrumento sobre el control de de la vida personal, analizando su estructura factorial mediante un análisis exploratorio y confirmatorio de sus dimensiones. El tamaño del estudio final fue de 8.504 entrevistas y el criterio básico de estratificación fue el distrito municipal en 21 estratos. Los resultados encontrados señalan que los ítems en cada una de las dimensiones y sus pesos factoriales son aceptables y se relacionan con enunciados genéricos sobre la atribución de control. A su vez, los índices de bondad de ajuste encontrados de cada uno de los modelos propuestos, arrojan información interesante sobre las posibilidades que este cuestionario ofrece.

Multidomain mild Cognitive Impairment (mMCI) patients have similar difficulties than those observed in the initial stages of Alzheimer disease. Many studies have explored language abilities in MCI, but few have focused in grammatical comprehension. This study explores the differences between mMCI patients and controls using a complete neuropsychological battery, it tries to discover if vocabulary and grammatical comprehension in both groups are predicted by naming and verbal fluency, and seeks the best subset of sentence structures to classify the subjects. There were significative differences between groups in verbs and in grammatical comprehension. Linear regression revealed that verb and sentence comprehension are independent of naming and verbal fluency performance in mMCI patients. In the control group verb comprehension is predicted by intrusions in verbal fluency, and the comprehension of sentences containing two propositions seems to be related to control processes and recognition errors. Two sentence structures, both not fitted to syntactic canonical order in Spanish, are especially useful for subjects’ classification. mMCI patients have a specific deficit affecting grammatical comprehension that doesn’t seem to depend on their low performance at lexical-semantic level. In healthy elders, verb and grammatical comprehension are related to control processes.

Imprenta Municipal. 13 p. ; 22 cm

Imp. que fué de García, por su regente Manuel Pita de la Vega .- 25 p.,[3] h., [2] h. pleg., ; 30 cm.