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Abstract Background While sex-based differences in various health scenarios have been thoroughly acknowledged in the literature, we lack sufficient tools and methods that allow for an in-depth analysis of sex as a variable in biomedical research. To fill this knowledge gap, we created MetaFun as an easy-to-use web-based tool to meta-analyze multiple transcriptomic datasets with a sex-based perspective to gain major statistical power and biological soundness. Description MetaFun is a complete suite that allows the analysis of transcriptomics data and the exploration of the results at all levels, performing single-dataset exploratory analysis, differential gene expression, gene set functional enrichment, and finally, combining results in a functional meta-analysis. Which biological processes, molecular functions or cellular components are altered in a common pattern in different transcriptomic studies when comparing male and female patients? This and other biological questions of interest can be answered with the use of MetaFun. This tool is available at https://bioinfo.cipf.es/metafun while additional help can be found at https://gitlab.com/ubb-cipf/metafunweb/-/wikis/Summary . Conclusions Overall, Metafun is the first open-access web-based tool to identify consensus biological functions across multiple transcriptomic datasets, helping to elucidate sex differences in numerous diseases. Its use will facilitate the generation of novel biological knowledge that can be used in the research and application of Personalized Medicine considering the sex of patients.

Introduction Rotator cuff-related shoulder pain (RCRSP) is the most common cause of shoulder pain. Currently, exercise is proposed as the first-line treatment for patients suffering from RCRSP. However, adherence to therapeutic exercise programmes can be poor in the long term in a home setting. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of adding video animations to a traditional paper-based exercise programme.Methods and analysis A single-centre, randomised, open-labelled clinical trial will be conducted in a hospital in Spain. Adults aged between 18 and 80 years diagnosed with RCRSP who meet the eligibility criteria will be included. Patients (n=132) will be randomised into two groups, with both receiving paper-based exercises, and the experimental group will also be provided with video animations. The participants will receive seven face-to-face physical therapy sessions and will be asked to perform the exercises at home for 6 months. The primary outcome measure will be the Shoulder Pain and Disability Index, measured at baseline, 3 weeks, 3 months (primary analysis) and 6 months. Secondary outcomes will be the patient’s pain intensity during the last week (rest, during movement and at night); expectations of improvement; satisfaction with treatment; impression of improvement; perceived usability, usefulness and satisfaction of multimedia animations; and adherence to exercises. Generalised least squares regression models with an autoregressive-moving average lag one correlation structure will be implemented, with an intention-to-treat analysis.Ethics and dissemination This study has been approved by the ethics committee of Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón (Madrid, Spain), reference number CI18/16. All participants will sign an informed consent. The results will be published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05770908.

Abstract Aim The rate of readmission after hospitalisation for respiratory diseases has become a common and challenging clinical problem. Social and functional patient variables could help identify cases at high risk of readmission. The aim was to identify the nursing diagnoses that were associated with readmission after hospitalisation for respiratory disease in Spain. Design Case‐control study within the cohort of patients admitted for respiratory disease during 2016–19 in a tertiary public hospital in Spain (n = 3781). Methods Cases were patients who were readmitted within the first 30 days of discharge, and their controls were the remaining patients. All nursing diagnoses (n = 130) were collected from the electronic health record. They were then grouped into 29 informative diagnostic categories. Clinical confounder‐adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated using logistic regression models. Results The readmission rate was 13.1%. The nursing diagnoses categories ‘knowledge deficit’ (OR: 1.61; 95%CI: 1.13–2.31), ‘impaired skin integrity and risk of ulcer infection’ (OR: 1.45; 95%CI: 1.06–1.97) and ‘activity intolerance associated with fatigue’ (OR: 1.56; 95%CI: 1.21–2.01) were associated with an increased risk of suffering an episode of hospital readmission rate at 30% after hospital discharge, and this was independent of sociodemographic background, care variables and comorbidity. Patient or public contribution The nursing diagnoses assigned as part of the care plan of patients during hospital admission may be useful for predicting readmissions.

In the summer of 2020, on the wave of the Black Lives Matter Movement, statues and public monuments became focal points of political struggle, perceived by many as symbolic reminders of pervading western imperial legacies. Yet, the debate over public memorialisation is far from new. Starting from the 2020 BLM protests in Britain and going back to previous campaigns, this article contextualises the toppling, effacing and removal of well-known statues of colonial agents in Britain, Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand and examines artistic interventions which appropriate, challenge and shatter static historical interpretations of imperial figures and events. Our contention is that these interventions constitute diverse forms of performative and re-storied resistance reflecting transnational demands for redress and reparation.

This study aims to compare the cyclic fatigue resistance of nickel–titanium (NiTi) endodontic instruments, focusing on the impact of various alloy treatments and manufacturing processes across different generations of these instruments; Twenty instrumentation systems from different generations, comprising both continuous and reciprocating motion designs, were tested. Four hundred instruments underwent cyclic fatigue testing using an INSTRON machine, with the time and number of cycles to fracture (NCF) recorded for each instrument. Statistical analyses were performed to compare the fatigue resistance between systems, generations, and motion types; Instruments treated with advanced thermal processing, such as Excalibur, Reciproc Blue, and TruNatomy, demonstrated superior resistance to fracture, whereas systems like Protaper Universal, K3XF, and 2Shape showed the lowest resistance. Reciprocating instruments generally exhibited higher cyclic fatigue resistance than continuously rotating instruments; Technological advancements in NiTi instrument design, especially the implementation of heat-treated alloys, have improved cyclic fatigue resistance, enhancing the safety and efficiency of endodontic treatments. Reciprocating systems, in particular, exhibit superior fracture resistance, suggesting their greater utility in challenging clinical conditions.

Geographic Information Systems (GISs) cover a wide range of Earth and environmental science disciplines that have become essential for spatial data management, easing the digital transformation needs of our society. Despite the usefulness of GISs, they remain underutilised in academia, and many students do not understand the possibilities that these tools offer. To familiarise university students with the potential of GISs, we designed 11 short clips (less than 5 min long) recorded by Earth scientists with diverse backgrounds who shared their work experience with GISs to solve real-world problems. Through these short clips, we emphasised not only the multidisciplinary uses of GISs but also provided professional references for undergraduate students, including societal aspects such as gender equality, national and international mobility, private-to-public-sector transitioning, and different family circumstances. As a result, the students expressed their interest in the applications of GISs, many of which were completely new to them, highlighting the potential of GISs in terms of entrepreneurship and their usefulness in mitigating global change. Thus, we were able to transfer knowledge from research to university education and foster spatial data management skills in Earth science.

Background Evidence-based mental health interventions to support healthcare workers (HCWs) in crisis settings are scarce.Objective To evaluate the capacity of a mental health intervention in reducing anxiety and depression symptoms in HCWs, relative to enhanced care as usual (eCAU), amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods We conducted an analyst-blind, parallel, multicentre, randomised controlled trial. We recruited HCWs with psychological distress from Madrid and Catalonia (Spain). The intervention arm received a stepped-care programme consisting of two WHO-developed interventions adapted for HCWs: Doing What Matters in Times of Stress (DWM) and Problem Management Plus (PM+). Each intervention lasted 5 weeks and was delivered remotely by non-specialist mental health providers. HCWs reporting psychological distress after DWM completion were invited to continue to PM+. The primary endpoint was self-reported anxiety/depression symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-Anxiety and Depression Scale) at week 21.Findings Between 3 November 2021 and 31 March 2022, 115 participants were randomised to stepped care and 117 to eCAU (86% women, mean age 37.5). The intervention showed a greater decrease in anxiety/depression symptoms compared with eCAU at the primary endpoint (baseline-adjusted difference 4.4, 95% CI 2.1 to 6.7; standardised effect size 0.8, 95% CI 0.4 to 1.2). No serious adverse events occurred.Conclusions Brief stepped-care psychological interventions reduce anxiety and depression during a period of stress among HCWs.Clinical implications Our results can inform policies and actions to protect the mental health of HCWs during major health crises and are potentially rapidly replicable in other settings where workers are affected by global emergencies.Trial registration number NCT04980326.

Traditional mixed crop-livestock systems face increased social and environmental uncertainties that arise from both endogenous (i.e., socio-demographics) and exogenous drivers of change (i.e., policy interventions). Adaptations are thus needed for their long-term continuity. The Institutional Analysis and Development Framework’s rules typology and the Institutional Grammar are used here to analyze institutional diversity in relation to the use of natural resources and temporal changes in institutions. We used data obtained from qualitative interviews with local farmers within communities in a semiarid area in Spain. Our objective was to analyze the institutional arrangements used over the last few decades relative to sharing common resources (pastures and water) and maintaining public infrastructures. Results show great diversity in institutional arrangements in the farming communities studied, associated mainly with the type of property rights of pastures (communal, public, private) and the level of collective actions needed in response to endogenous and exogenous drivers of change. This study allows us to propose a robust methodological approach to qualitatively analyze institutional arrangements associated with the use of natural resources in farming systems, and to discuss how institutions adapt to policy changes and to new social and environmental realities.

Objetivos: presentar un caso de necrosis uterina tras técnica de sutura hemostática por hemorragia posparto y hacer una revisión de la literatura para determinar la técnica de sutura utilizada, los hallazgos clínicos, la técnica diagnóstica y el tratamiento realizado en los casos clínicos descritos. Materiales y métodos: se presenta el caso de una mujer de 34 años que consultó por dolor abdominal al octavo día tras cesárea por placenta previa, que precisó sutura de B-Lynch por atonía uterina y cuyo diagnóstico fue necrosis uterina. La paciente requirió histerectomía abdominal total, con evolución satisfactoria. Se realizó una búsqueda sistemática de la literatura en las bases de datos Medline vía Pubmed, Embase y Web of Science. Se buscaron series y reportes de casos y cohortes de mujeres con necrosis uterina posterior al uso de suturas de compresión uterina para control de hemorragia posparto. Se analizaron variables sociodemográficas y clínicas al diagnóstico, técnica de sutura, pruebas diagnósticas y tratamiento. Resultados: se incluyeron 23 estudios con 24 pacientes. El 83 % de las necrosis ocurrieron tras cesárea. La técnica más utilizada fue B-Lynch (66 %), seguida de Cho (25 %). Los síntomas más frecuentes fueron fiebre y dolor abdominal. La prueba diagnóstica más utilizada fue la tomografía computarizada (9 de 24 casos). En la mayoría de casos se realizó histerectomía (75 %). Conclusiones: la necrosis de la pared uterina es una complicación infrecuente pero grave. Sería recomendable el diseño de cohortes de seguimiento de mujeres sometidas a estos procedimientos para determinar la incidencia de complicaciones asociadas.

Much of the law enforcement work takes place close to the public, often arriving at the scene before medical services in the case of victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. If properly trained, these early care procedures can be powerful mechanisms to improve survival. This paper describes a case of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest assisted by law enforcement officers on the public highway in Asturias-Spain. In addition, a qualitative study was carried out to learn about the experience of the officers during the intervention, their willingness to act in similar emergencies, as well as to gather information about their training and knowledge of basic life support. The case was successfully resolved; however, some errors in the spontaneous execution of the chain of survival and the officers’ statements prompted some recommendations for the mobilization, training and staffing of law enforcement agencies in Spain.

Cyclic (di)nucleotides act as universal second messengers endogenously produced by several pathogens. Specifically, the roles of c-di-AMP in Mycobacterium tuberculosis immunity and virulence have been largely explored, although its contribution to the safety and efficacy of live tuberculosis vaccines is less understood. In this study, we demonstrate that the synthesis of c-di-AMP is negatively regulated by the M. tuberculosis PhoPR virulence system. Accordingly, the live attenuated tuberculosis vaccine candidate M. tuberculosis vaccine (MTBVAC), based on double phoP and fadD26 deletions, produces more than 25- and 45-fold c-di-AMP levels relative to wild-type M. tuberculosis or the current vaccine bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), respectively. Secretion of this second messenger was exclusively detected in MTBVAC but not in M. tuberculosis or in BCG. We also demonstrate that c-di-AMP synthesis during in vitro cultivation of M. tuberculosis is a growth-phase- and medium-dependent phenotype. To uncover the role of this metabolite in the vaccine properties of MTBVAC, we constructed and validated knockout and overproducing/oversecreting derivatives by inactivating the disA or cnpB gene, respectively. All MTBVAC derivatives elicited superior interleukin-1β (IL-1β) responses compared with BCG during an in vitro infection of human macrophages. However, both vaccines failed to elicit interferon β (IFNβ) activation in this cellular model. We found that increasing c-di-AMP levels remarkably correlated with a safer profile of tuberculosis vaccines in the immunodeficient mouse model. Finally, we demonstrate that overproduction of c-di-AMP due to cnpB inactivation resulted in lower protection of MTBVAC, while the absence of c-di-AMP in the MTBVAC disA derivative maintains the protective efficacy of this vaccine in mice.

Introduction. The screening for atrial fibrillation (AF) scale (SAFE score) was recently developed to provide a prediction of the diagnosis of AF after an ischemic stroke. It includes 7 items: age≥65 years, bronchopathy, thyroid disease, cortical location of stroke, intracranial large vessel occlusion, NT-ProBNP ≥250 pg/mL, and left atrial enlargement. In the internal validation, a good performance was obtained, with an AUC=0.88 (95% CI 0.84-0.91) and sensitivity and specificity of 83% and 80%, respectively, for scores≥5. The aim of this study is the external validation of the SAFE score in a multicenter cohort. Methods. A retrospective multicenter study, including consecutive patients with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack between 2020 and 2022 with at least 24 hours of cardiac monitoring. Patients with previous AF or AF diagnosed on admission ECG were excluded. Results. Overall, 395 patients were recruited for analysis. The SAFE score obtained an AUC=0.822 (95% CI 0.778-0.866) with a sensitivity of 87.2%, a specificity of 65.4%, a positive predictive value of 44.1%, and a negative predictive value of 94.3% for a SAFE score≥5, with no significant gender differences. Calibration analysis in the external cohort showed an absence of significant differences between the observed values and those predicted by the model (Hosmer-Lemeshow’s test 0.089). Conclusions. The SAFE score showed adequate discriminative ability and calibration, so its external validation is justified. Further validations in other external cohorts or specific subpopulations of stroke patients might be required.

Background and aims: The benefits of the PCSK9 inhibitors, alirocumab and evolocumab, in lowering LDL-cholesterol and preventing major adverse cardiac events (MACE) have been demonstrated in pivotal clinical trials. However, few studies of routine clinical practice have been conducted to analyse and compare the efficacy and safety of the two drugs. Methods: Retrospective observational study of patients treated with a PCSK9 inhibitor in five hospitals in Andalusia (southern Spain). Baseline demographic and clinical data, LDL-cholesterol levels and the occurrence of MACEs during the follow-up period were recorded. Results: A total of 141 patients were included in the study: 90 were treated with alirocumab and 51 with evolocumab. The patients’ mean age (IQR) was 58 (11) years and 58 (41%) were women. The most frequent concomitant medications were statins, 94 (66.7%), followed by antiplatelet therapy (66%) and ezetimibe (65.2%). The median (IQR) follow-up period was 18 (18) months, with 18 (24) for alirocumab and 11 (18) for evolocumab. At the six-month follow-up visit, LDL-cholesterol values had decreased to pre-treatment levels and remained significantly decreased (p

Abstract Background Medical texts such as radiology reports or electronic health records are a powerful source of data for researchers. Anonymization methods must be developed to de-identify documents containing personal information from both patients and medical staff. Although currently there are several anonymization strategies for the English language, they are also language-dependent. Here, we introduce a named entity recognition strategy for Spanish medical texts, translatable to other languages. Results We tested 4 neural networks on our radiology reports dataset, achieving a recall of 97.18% of the identifying entities. Alongside, we developed a randomization algorithm to substitute the detected entities with new ones from the same category, making it virtually impossible to differentiate real data from synthetic data. The three best architectures were tested with the MEDDOCAN challenge dataset of electronic health records as an external test, achieving a recall of 69.18%. Conclusions The strategy proposed, combining named entity recognition tasks with randomization of entities, is suitable for Spanish radiology reports. It does not require a big training corpus, thus it could be easily extended to other languages and medical texts, such as electronic health records.

Human-nature connectedness is key to foster environmental and socio-cultural sustainability in agricultural landscapes since it promotes the establishment of belonging, stewardship, and connections to nature. Cooperation, collective action, and the role of women at sustainable agroecological practices could be leverage points in which small interventions may hold great potential for system transformation. We analyse the different types of human-nature connectedness mediated by the Agrolab participatory collective farming initiative running in Madrid (Spain). Our results described and quantified a participatory collective farming initiative using the leverage point perspective, and identified factors explaining nature relatedness of participants (i.e. social importance of agricultural landscapes, linkages with farming activities, time spent outdoors, gender and a negative relationship with the rural residence). We found that women showed a stronger and broader worldview on the philosophical arguments about their connection with nature, while men identified themselves and nature through more cognitive responses. Our results give indication of participatory collecting farming as a leverage point to foster human-nature connectedness. Finally, we discussed how participatory collective farming activities are suitable for introducing nature into people’s daily lives and may help to identify pathways towards a stronger human-nature connectedness.

This perspective paper synthesises the special issue ‘Human-nature connectedness as a leverage point for sustainability transformation’. Based on the articles in this special issue, we aim to foster the operationalisation of the leverage points perspective to shape human-nature relations to enable sustainability transformations. Specifically, we draw on four key advantages of the leverage points perspective: (i) the explicit recognition of deep leverage points; (ii) the ability to examine the interactions between shallow and deep system changes; (iii) the combination of causal and teleological modes of research; and (iv) the ability to function as a methodological boundary object. The contributions to this special issue revealed three deep leverage points addressing paradigm shifts in research and beyond: relational thinking and values, stewardship philosophy and shifting the economic growth paradigm to focus on human well-being. We highlight interlinkages between leverage points to further strengthen the transformative potential of interventions that aim at triggering shifts in our understanding about human-nature relations. Further, we show a way to bridge causal and teleological approaches by envisioning desired futures. Lastly, we emphasise the potential of arts-based methodologies, including participatory, transdisciplinary research to foster sustainability transformation and how this can be combined within the leverage points perspective.

A través del análisis de los artículos de opinión en la prensa diaria de la Comunidad Autónoma Vasca (CAV), este artículo analiza las resistencias y objeciones ante los avances del feminismo. Se estudian 139 artículos pertenecientes al género de opinión durante los meses de enero, febrero y marzo de 2018. Las resistencias suponen una fuerza importante de obstrucción en los procesos de integración de la perspectiva de género y buscan preservar el orden imperante en una sociedad en lugar de cuestionarlo. Se elaboran cuatro temas principales de análisis y se concluye que los artículos analizados muestran en su conjunto que, en efecto, ante acontecimientos sociales, políticos y culturales que buscan trastocar el orden establecido ligados al feminismo, hay una fuerte reacción que muestra resistencias y obstáculos. El feminismo es tachado de exagerado, maximalista, rígido, victimista, puritano, monjil e ignorante. El feminismo radical, radicalizado o de izquierdas es acusado de ser excluyente y los artículos traducen una visión ofrecida al público lector como ocasión para desacreditar al feminismo en su conjunto.

Introduction: Recent studies have shown that symptoms of psychiatric illness, functionality, and cognitive function improve with exercise. The aim of this study will be to investigate whether the implementation of an individualized exercise program will improve the functional status of patients with bipolar disorder (BD).Methods: This longitudinal, interventional, randomized, controlled, simple-blind clinical trial will include 80 patients aged 18–65 years, all of them with BD diagnosis. Patients will be randomly assigned to a physical exercise intervention + Treatment-As-Usual (TAU) group and a non-intervention + TAU group. Patients will be assessed by an extensive battery of clinical tests, physical parameters (e.g., brain structure changes measured by optical coherence tomography, cardiorespiratory fitness) and biological parameters (inflammation, oxidative stress and neurotrophic factors) at baseline, after a 4-month intervention period, and 6-month follow-up.Discussion: This is an innovative study aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of the physiopathology of BD and determining whether the prognosis and evolution of the disease can be improved through modifiable areas of the patient's lifestyle.Clinical Trial Registration: NCT04400630. NCT clinicaltrials.gov. Date of registration in primary registry 22 May 2020. clinicaltrials.gov.

Background: Human tuberculosis (TB) is caused by a plethora of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) strains belonging to seven phylogenetic branches. Lineages 2, 3 and 4 are considered “modern” branches of the MTBC responsible for the majority of worldwide TB. Since the current BCG vaccine confers variable protection against pulmonary TB, new candidates are investigated. MTBVAC is the unique live attenuated vaccine based on M. tuberculosis in human clinical trials. Methods: MTBVAC was originally constructed by unmarked phoP and fadD26 deletions in a clinical isolate belonging to L4. Here we construct new vaccines based on isogenic gene deletions in clinical isolates of the L2 and L3 modern lineages. These three vaccine candidates were characterized at molecular level and also in animal experiments of protection and safety. Findings: Safety studies in immunocompromised mice showed that MTBVAC-L2 was less attenuated than BCG Pasteur, while the original MTBVAC was found even more attenuated than BCG and MTBVAC-L3 showed an intermediate phenotype. The three MTBVAC candidates showed similar or superior protection compared to BCG in immunocompetent mice vaccinated with each MTBVAC candidate and challenged with three representative strains of the modern lineages. Interpretation: MTBVAC vaccines, based on double phoP and fadD26 deletions, protect against TB independently of the phylogenetic linage used as template strain for their construction. Nevertheless, lineage L4 confers the best safety profile. Funding: European Commission (TBVAC2020, H2020-PHC-643381), Spanish Ministry of Science (RTI2018-097625-B-I00), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI18/0336), Gobierno de Aragón/Fondo Social Europeo and the French National Research Council (ANR-10-LABX-62-IBEID, ANR-16-CE35-0009, ANR-16-CE15-0003).

Pathway optimization and chassis engineering are usually carried out in a step-wise and trial-and-error manner. Here the authors present ’SCRaMbLE-in’ that combines in-vitro pathway rapid prototyping with in-vivo genome integration and optimization.

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of maladaptive cardiac remodeling and heart failure. In the damaged heart, loss of function is mainly due to cardiomyocyte death and remodeling of the cardiac tissue. The current study shows that A-kinase anchoring protein 2 (AKAP2) orchestrates cellular processes favoring cardioprotection in infarcted hearts. Induction of AKAP2 knockout (KO) in cardiomyocytes of adult mice increases infarct size and exacerbates cardiac dysfunction after MI, as visualized by increased left ventricular dilation and reduced fractional shortening and ejection fraction. In cardiomyocytes, AKAP2 forms a signaling complex with PKA and the steroid receptor co-activator 3 (Src3). Upon activation of cAMP signaling, the AKAP2/PKA/Src3 complex favors PKA-mediated phosphorylation and activation of estrogen receptor α (ERα). This results in the upregulation of ER-dependent genes involved in protection against apoptosis and angiogenesis, including Bcl2 and the vascular endothelial growth factor a (VEGFa). In line with these findings, cardiomyocyte-specific AKAP2 KO reduces Bcl2 and VEGFa expression, increases myocardial apoptosis and impairs the formation of new blood vessels in infarcted hearts. Collectively, our findings suggest that AKAP2 organizes a transcriptional complex that mediates pro-angiogenic and anti-apoptotic responses that protect infarcted hearts.

Resumen El feminismo británico negro se consolida a finales de los años 80 y está directamente vinculado a la lucha activista de mujeres inmigrantes, así como a la creación de grupos de escritura creativa. Este artículo traza una breve genealogía de escritoras británicas negras y asiáticas que utilizaron su voz para inscribir sus experiencias y reivindicar la necesidad de examinar las intersecciones entre las categorías de raza y género. Abstract The last years of the 80’s witnessed the consolidation of Black British and Asian British feminisms that have had their origins in the struggles and activism of Black and Asian women immigrants and the emergence of creative writing groups. This article draws a brief genealogy of Black and Asian British women writers who record their experiences and claim the need to re-examine the intersections between the categories of race and gender.

La primera novela de Zadie Smith, White Teeth (2000), ha sido considerada como ejemplo del multiculturalismo y de la pluralidad que caracterizan hoy en día a la ciudad de Londres. Este artículo estudia los modos en los que los personajes de White Teeth negocian un sentido de pertenencia e identidad y establecen y/o transgreden fronteras espaciales dentro de dicha localización. Este trabajo analiza también la identidad híbrida de los personajes y el carácter maleable que tiene tal espacio multicultural a través del análisis de las relaciones inter- e intra-familiares que se representan en la novela. Abstract: Zadie Smith’s fi rst novel White Teeth (2000) has been analysed as an example of the diverse and multicultural society of the present-day city of London. This essay studies the way in which characters in White Teeth negotiate a sense of belonging and identity and how boundaries are established, and/or violated within that location. It also analyses the characters’ hybrid identities and the malleable aspect of that multicultural social space by focusing on the ways Smith depicts spatial confi gurations of inter and intra family life.

En 2017, la eclosión de las reivindicaciones feministas irrumpió con firmeza en el foco de los debates de la opinión pública. Ante esta realidad, este estudio considera que la comunicación del mensaje del movimiento feminista y la percepción social del mismo exigen mayor exploración, reflexión y clarificación. Los medios de comunicación (en adelante, MMCC) no solo proyectan, sino que construyen la realidad y modulan nuestras percepciones en torno a aspectos como el que aquí se estudia. Para analizar la incidencia de las reivindicaciones sociales, se aplica el Análisis Crítico del Discurso (en adelante, ACD) a un corpus seleccionado de artículos de prensa. Igualmente es preciso calibrar y analizar la percepción social que la ciudadanía tiene de los fenómenos que acontecen. El feminismo, a pesar de abogar por unos principios de evidente equidad y tras varios siglos de pedagogía, continúa resultando un término confuso y generador de sentimientos ambivalentes.

Meera Syal’s latest novel, The House of Hidden Mothers (2015), depicts the current practice of international surrogacy and raises questions about this form of reproduction which commodifies babies and constructs poor women’s bodies in India and elsewhere as sites of reproductive exploitation. Nonetheless, Syal’s novel challenges an initial reading of Indian surrogate mothers as mere passive victims of western capitalist demands and depicts a surrogate mother, Mala, who constantly subverts her position as a disempowered, ‘third world’ woman. I shall argue that the novel bridges the discursive western-constructed gap between ‘poor and disempowered’ Indian women and ‘rich and empowered’ British ones explicitly through its ending, but also implicitly by engaging with gender concerns related to the perception, (re)presentation and exploitation of women’s bodies in the United Kingdom and India alike.

Vitis vinífera L. cv. Maturana Blanca is an autochthonous minor variety recently recovered in the Rioja Qualified Denomination of Origin (D.O.Ca Rioja, Spain) for the production of monovarietal white wines with singular and differentiated characteristics. In this paper, Maturana Blanca wines made with different technologies were analyzed by sensory analysis and aromatic profile by gas chromatography-mass detector. Maturana Blanca wines were characterized by low pH, high acidity, and yellowish tonalities. The compounds that most influenced the aroma of Maturana Blanca wines were those related to fruity (acetates and ethyl esters), floral aromas (2-phenylethanol), and spicy notes (γ-decalactone). These wines were mainly characterized by volatile compounds of fruity aromas of banana and apple. The use of pre-fermentative maceration increased the concentration of ethyl esters and acetates and produced wines with higher odor activity values, indicating a greater aromatic intensity. The aromatic profile of Maturana Blanca wines fermented in oak barrels showed a greater complexity as they were also characterized by the presence of important amounts of furfural, whiskey lactone, and eugenol. The sensory analysis confirmed the results obtained in the aromatic analysis, and described the wines as fresh and balanced in mouth, with notes of acidity and medium to high persistence. These results will contribute to a better knowledge of this white variety.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate reliability of four different assays for measuring infliximab trough levels and antibodies to infliximab (ATI). Methods: In this non-interventional, cross-sectional study including IBD patients, infliximab levels and ATI were measured using four different assays: Lisa-Tracker, Promonitor, Q-Inflixi and Sanquin. Reliability and agreement for infliximab levels was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland–Altman plots. Qualitative agreement for infliximab (based on a pre-established target window of trough levels between 3 µg/ml and 7 µg/ml) and for ATI were estimated by Cohen’s kappa. Results: Serum samples of 84 IBD patients were evaluated for infliximab using the four assays. Reliability was ‘substantial’ between Lisa-Tracker versus Promonitor and ‘almost perfect’ between the remaining assay pairs, with ICCs [95% confidence interval (CI)] ranging from 0.93 (0.70–0.97) for Lisa-Tracker versus Promonitor to 0.97 (0.95–0.98) for Q-Inflixi versus Sanquin. Bland–Altman plots showed significant bias between assays except Promonitor versus Q-Inflixi, which had excellent agreement. The greatest differences in mean infliximab were found between Promonitor versus Lisa-Tracker (–0.91 µg/ml) and Lisa-Tracker versus Q-Inflixi (0.69 µg/ml). Qualitative agreement for infliximab was ‘almost perfect’ for Promonitor versus Q-Inflixi (kappa 0.84) and Q-Inflixi versus Sanquin (kappa 0.81), and ‘substantial’ for the remaining pairs. More than 10% of patients who had infliximab levels within the target interval by Lisa-Tracker had suboptimal concentrations (7 µg/ml) by Lisa-Tracker. In the remaining paired comparisons, fewer than 5% of patients were placed in different subgroups. Qualitative agreement for ATI fluctuated between ‘moderate’ and ‘almost perfect’. Conclusions: All four assays seem suitable for therapeutic drug monitoring of infliximab. Promonitor and Q-Inflixi had the best agreement, making those assays fully interchangeable. Systematic biases between Lisa-Tracker with Promonitor and Q-Inflixi suggest that these assays should not be interchanged during the follow up of an individual patient.

The insertion Sequence IS6110, only present in the pathogens of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex (MTBC), has been the gold-standard epidemiological marker for TB for more than 25 years, but biological implications of IS6110 transposition during MTBC adaptation to humans remain elusive. By studying 2,236 clinical isolates typed by IS6110-RFLP and covering the MTBC, we remarked a lineage-specific content of IS6110 being higher in modern globally distributed strains. Once observed the IS6110 distribution in the MTBC, we selected representative isolates and found a correlation between the normalized expression of IS6110 and its abundance in MTBC chromosomes. We also studied the molecular regulation of IS6110 transposition and we found a synergistic action of two post-transcriptional mechanisms: a -1 ribosomal frameshift and a RNA pseudoknot which interferes translation. The construction of a transcriptionally active transposase resulted in 20-fold increase of the transposition frequency. Finally, we examined transposition in M. bovis and M. tuberculosis during laboratory starvation and in a mouse infection model of TB. Our results shown a higher transposition in M. tuberculosis, that preferably happens during TB infection in mice and after one year of laboratory culture, suggesting that IS6110 transposition is dynamically adapted to the host and to adverse growth conditions.

User detection, recognition, and tracking is at the heart of human–robot interaction, and yet, to date, no universal robust method exists for being aware of the people in a robot’s surroundings. The present article imports into existing social robotic platforms different techniques, some of them classical, and other novel, for detecting, recognizing, and tracking human users. The outputs from the parallel execution of these algorithms are then merged, creating a modular, expandable, and fast architecture. This results in a local user mapping through fusion of multiple user recognition techniques. The different people detectors comply with a common interface called PeoplePoseList Publisher, while the people recognition algorithms meet an interface called PeoplePoseList Matcher. The fusion of all these different modules is based on the Unscented Kalman Filtering technique. Extensive benchmarks of the subcomponents and of the whole architecture demonstrate the validity and interest of all levels of the architecture. In addition, all the software and data sets generated in this work are freely available.

The Montreal Protocol is generally credited as a successful example of international cooperation in response to a global environmental problem. As a result, the production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances has declined rapidly, and it is expected that atmospheric ozone concentrations will return to their normal ranges toward the end of this century. This paper applies the social-ecological system framework and common-pool resource theory to explore the congruence between successful resolution of small-scale appropriation problems and ozone regulation, a large-scale pollution problem. The results of our analysis correspond closely to past studies of the Protocol that highlight the importance of attributes such as a limited number of major industrial producers, advances in scientific knowledge, and the availability of technological substitutes. However, in contrast to previous theoretical accounts that focus on one or a few variables, our analysis suggests that its success may have been the result of interactions between a wider range of SES attributes, many of which are associated with successful small-scale environmental governance. Although carefully noting the limitations of drawing conclusions from the analysis of a single case, our analysis reveals the potential for fruitful interplay between common-pool resource theory and large-scale pollution problems.

El oasis de Comondú es un agroecosistema de gran riqueza ecológica y cultural estrechamente ligado a la presencia de agua en un entorno árido. La subsistencia de sus poblaciones desde antes de la época misional hasta nuestros tiempos es una muestra explícita de sustentabilidad. Sin embargo, condiciones socioeconómicas y ambientales externas han desequilibrado este sistema socioambiental, que se dirige a su declive y desaparición. Nuestro objetivo general es evaluar la sustentabilidad de este sistema socioambiental mediante el enfoque de indicadores integrados en modelos dinámicos. El objetivo de este artículo es presentar este emergente enfoque y mostrar los primeros pasos de esta investigación: la construcción participativa de un modelo conceptual de nuestro sistema de estudio. Hemos identificado las principales variables e interrelaciones, y los procesos históricos que han influido en su dinámica. El modelo conceptual resultante incluye los subsistemas social y económico-productivo. La dinámica general del sistema de Comondú se encuentra en gran medida bajo el control de variables externas, climáticas como huracanes y precipitaciones, y de carácter socioeconómico, como la deslocalización sociopolítica, las ayudas gubernamentales y la intensificación agrícola exterior.

Despite the increasing prevalence of forest-cover change and conflicts, most studies have been unable to unravel the complex relations between the two processes. We attribute this failure to methodological limitations. We put forward an alternative approach that combines different datasets (remote sensing, GIS, local narratives, official censuses, newspaper articles), methods (spatial and relational analyses), and scales (subregions, economic sectors, land-based activities) to create a robust explanation of the relations between different intensities of forest-cover change and conflict in the Meseta Purépecha region, central Mexico. This is an important forest region, inhabited by indigenous and mestizo peasants; it has a worldwide reputation for community forestry and is also the epicenter of international avocado production. Forest-cover change is intense and there are recurrent episodes of conflict. We clustered communities in three subregions according to their patterns of forest-cover change. We analyzed the spatial patterns of forest-cover change and conflicts and we characterized the structure and function of the different economic sectors to unravel the nonlinear, interdependent (and sometimes contradictory) relations among these processes. We found that avocado production has differentially shaped the composition and working of society within each subregion, leading to three diverging patterns. Avocado production has provoked conflicts over landownership and over illegal logging in nearby areas. In some areas, a low incidence of conflicts over forest clearance might be explained by high profits, coercion, and violence. We suggest that, by combining spatial and relational analyses, we can integrate and check the congruence of nonequivalent representations from quantitative sources and observant participation at different scales and explain the heterogeneity that processes display across space. Our methodological approach can thus improve our understanding of similar and other complex and uncertain environmental problems elsewhere, especially when accurate or appropriate data are missing.

El entendimiento de la práctica, la teoría y la enseñanza de la arquitectura como un solo proceso es algo que se ha repetido en ciertos grupos o movimientos, oficinas de arquitectura y escuelas, alcanzando especial trascendencia en algunos momentos puntuales. El artículo aborda el trabajo de algunas técnicas de enseñanza transferidas de prácticas profesionales o, a la inversa, formas de enfrentarse al proyecto profesional derivadas de técnicas aplicadas en la enseñanza de la arquitectura. Para ser más precisos y no abarcar un sin fin de testimonios, la investigación se concentra en un periodo de la arquitectura que produjo métodos muy diversos de establecer dichas transferencia entre la enseñanza y el proyecto: los movimientos radicales y conceptuales de la década de 1960-1970, y se centra específicamente en la revisión de proyectos de gran escala, desde urbanos a arquitectónicos. El método de trabajo consiste en el estudio contrastado de casos, referido tanto a escuelas de arquitectura, como a proyectos, con el fin de establecer filiaciones y detectar casos arquetípicos de estudio.

El artículo explora conceptualmente las nociones de arquitectura, urbanismo e infraestructura, con el fin descubrir estructuras capaces de integrar las tres dimensiones. En ese marco, y apoyándose en el texto de Stan Allen, Urbanismo Infraestructural, se es- tablecen tres categorías de estudio. En primer lugar, Sistemas de Flujos, revisará conceptos y casos de estudio desde la óptica de los sistemas de flujos, las redes de movimiento y arquitecturas que ensayan con ellos como material del proyecto. Condiciones de campo estudia dos casos, Berlin Haupstadt y Potteries Thinkbelt, como escenarios de una nueva forma de construir el lugar mismo, apoyado en sistema infraestructurales, para generar soluciones que dejen abierto el sistema a nuevos desarrollos y posibilidades. Por último, Urbanismo y arquitectura infraestructural, toma como caso de estudio las estaciones japonesas y centros comerciales asociados, como escenarios donde unas y otras condiciones se concentran y amplían, generando nuevos tipos y nuevas posibilida- des, espaciales y programáticas.

Globalization increases the vulnerability of traditional social-ecological systems (SES) to the incursion of new resource appropriators, i.e. intruders. New external disturbances that increase the physical and socio-political accessibility of SES (e.g. construction of a new road) and weak points in institutional SES of valuable common-pool resources are some of the main factors that enhance the encroachment of intruders. The irrigation system of the northwest Murcia Region (Spain) is an example used in this article of the changes in the structure and robustness of a traditional SES as a result of intruders. In this case study, farmers have traditionally used water from springs to irrigate their lands but, in recent decades, large agrarian companies have settled in this region, using groundwater to irrigate new lands. This intrusion had caused the levels of this resource to drop sharply. In an attempt to adapt, local communities are intensifying the use of resources and are constructing new physical infrastructures; consequently, new vulnerabilities are emerging. This situation seems to be heading toward the inevitably collapse of this traditional SES. From an institutional viewpoint, some recommendations are offered to enhance the robustness of SES in order to mitigate the consequences of intruders.

Collapse of social-ecological systems (SESs) is a common process in human history. Depletion of natural resources, scarcity of human capital, or both, is/are common pathways toward collapse. We use the system dynamics approach to better understand specific problems of small-scale, long-lived SESs. We present a qualitative (or conceptual) model using the conceptualization process of the system dynamics approach to study the dynamics of an oasis in Mexico that has witnessed a dramatic transition to decline in recent decades. We used indepth interviews, participant observation, expert opinions, and official statistical data sets to define the boundaries, and structure in a causal loop diagram of our studied system. We described historical trends and showed the reference mode for the main system variables (observed data), and analyzed the expected system behavior according to the system structure. We identified the main drivers that changed the system structure, as well as structural changes, and the effects of these changes on the dynamics, resilience, and vulnerability of this SES. We found that the tendency of this SES toward collapse was triggered by exogenous factors (growth of modern agriculture in nearby valleys, and socio-political relocation), and was maintained by an endogenous structure. These structural changes weakened the resilience of this SES. One of these changes resulted in a long-term maladaptation of the SES, which increased its vulnerability to frequent system disturbances (hurricanes and droughts). The conceptual model developed provides an in-depth qualitative description of the system, with an important amount of qualitative and quantitative information, to establish the structural hypothesis of the observed behavior. Using this qualitative model, the next research steps are to develop a quantitative model to test the qualitative theories, and to explore future scenarios of system resilience for decision-making processes to improve local conditions and restore the well-functioning of the system.

Research on collective action and common-pool resources is extensive. However, little work has concentrated on the effect of variability in resource availability and collective action, especially in the context of asymmetric access to resources. Earlier works have demonstrated that environmental variability often leads to a reduction of collective action in the governance of shared resources. Here we assess how environmental variability may impact collective action. We performed a behavioral experiment involving an irrigation dilemma. In this dilemma participants invested first into a public fund that generated water resources for the group, which were subsequently appropriated by one participant at a time from head end to tail end. The amount of resource generated for the given investment level was determined by a payoff table and a stochastic event representing environmental variability, i.e., rainfall. Results show that that (1) upstream users' behavior is by far the most important variable in determining the outcome of collective action; (2) environmental variability (i.e. risk level in investing in the resource) has little effect on individual investment and extraction levels; and (3) the action-reaction feedback is fundamental in determining the success or failure of communities.