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Respiratory disease is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, mainly in homozygous PI*ZZ individuals. However, this association is uncertain in subjects with other deficiency genotypes. The objective of this study was to assess, in the context of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, the existence of further risk factors that have been associated with respiratory diseases.Lung function was assessed by spirometry in a sample of 1334 patients with a known genotype for the SERPINA1 gene whose serum alpha-1 antitrypsin levels had been previously determined. Patients with a normal genotype (PI*MM) were compared to 389 patients carrying a deficiency allele.Statistically significant associations were detected between (i) PI*ZZ genotype and abnormal FEV1 values (χ2 = 26.45; P.0002), FEV1/FVC (χ2 = 14.8; P.02) or forced mid-expiratory flow 25%-75% (χ2 =22.66; P.0009); (ii) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and PI*ZZ odds ratio: 26.5; 95% CI: (2.6-265.9); P.005 and or PI*SS genotype odds ratio: 9; 95% CI: (2-40.1); P.004; (iii) prevalence of COPD in PI*MZ subjects and smoking habit (P.01), low body weight (P.01) or older age (P.0001).The PI*ZZ and PI*SS genotypes seem to be associated with the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Tobacco use, low body weight, and older age are risk factors that increase the probability of prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease by up to 70% in PI*MZ individuals.

Persea americana (avocado) represents one of the most demanded food products worldwide, with an important impact in several agronomy-based economies. The avocado is one of the most salt-sensitive and valuable crops. It is therefore necessary to use salt-tolerant varieties, such as the West Indian, for cultivation in locations with soil salinity problems, such as the Canary Islands. Therefore, characterization of avocado cultivars is in demand, as well as development of molecular tools able to easily identify the main avocado cultivars and horticultural races. In the present work, inter-Primer Binding Site (iPBS) and Inter-Retrotransposon Amplified Polymorphism (IRAP) techniques, which are based on retrotransposon with Long Terminal Repeats (LTR), have been implemented for the first time in P. americana, allowing the characterization of genetic variation among cultivars from the three main horticultural races and the identification of potential P. americana LTR sequences. The iPBS approach showed clear advantages over its technical implementation, and allowed a better delimitation of horticultural races, especially when focused on West Indian cultivars. However, both techniques generated reproducible genetic fingerprints that not only allowed genetic characterization of each cultivar analyzed, but also revealed potential molecular markers for the identification of avocado cultivars and horticultural races.

Hypoglycemia can cause symptoms of neuroglycopenia that can be easily confused with symptoms of greater clinical importance such as stroke. Appropriate differential diagnosis between these 2 processes will be essential for guiding the treatment approach. We report a case in which stroke was initially suspected because hypoglycemia was masked by the incorrect capillary blood glucose (CBG) measurement technique used in treating an itinerant vendor of prickly pears (Opuntia ficus-indica). We studied the effects of prickly pear handling on the CBG levels in 11 vendors before and after they handled the fruit. CBG levels were noticeably higher after the fruit was handled in all cases. Our observations reveal the need to measure both capillary and venous blood glucose levels to rule out hypoglycemia in patients with acute neurological symptoms.La hipoglucemia puede provocar síntomas neuroglucopénicos que fácilmente pueden confundirse con los ocasionados por patologías con otra repercusión clínica como son los accidentes cerebrovasculares (ACV). Un correcto diagnóstico diferencial entre ambos procesos será fundamental a la hora de determinar estrategias terapéuticas adecuadas. Presentamos un caso donde la incorrecta técnica de determinación de glucemia capilar (GC) en un vendedor ambulante de higos chumbos (Opuntia ficus-indica) enmascaró una hipoglucemia y motivó la sospecha inicial de un ACV. Se estudió la GC en 11 vendedores de estos frutos, antes y después de su manipulación. En todos los casos, las glucemias posteriores fueron notablemente superiores. Los resultados obtenidos evidenciaron la necesidad de realizar correctamente la técnica de determinación de GC y la importancia de descartar la hipoglucemia con doble medición (capilar y venosa), en pacientes con sintomatología neurológica aguda.

Los numerosos cambios ocurridos en la marina natural de Arrecife en los últimos años ocasionaron una regresión de las praderas de Zostera noltii Hornemann, planta marina catalogada en Canarias en la categoría de “Peligro de Extinción”. Los ejemplares supervivientes representan individuos clónicos, lo cual refuerza el diagnóstico sobre el estado crítico de esta población natural. Se discuten, al final de este artículo, diferentes consideraciones en el contexto de la genética de poblaciones con vistas a un plan de actuación para restaurar el ecosistema de la marina de Arrecife.

By analysis of a case of discrepancy between serum alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) level and genotype for the most common defective alleles associated with AAT deficiency (PI*S and PI*Z), a patient carrying the allele PI*Q0ourém has been identified for the first time outside of Portugal. This null allele has been implicated in cases of severe pulmonary emphysema. After developing a clinical assay for detection of c.1130insT mutation, based on fluorescent probes (HybProbe®), another 4 carriers of PI*Q0ourém allele were identified among 43 patients with abnormally low serum AAT levels based on their genotypes for PI*S and PI*Z alleles. Since 4 out 5 cases are from the same locality (La Palma Island, Spain), it is advisable to conduct genetic analyses of affected families and, possibly, a focused population screening.

RESUMEN: En el marco de las profundas transformaciones económicas y sociales experimentadas en España a partir de los años cincuenta y sobre todo de los sesenta, lo que se conoce como el «milagro español», en este artículo se analizan los cambios que afectan al «milagro vasco» y sus repercusiones en campos y niveles que configuran un nuevo y muy diferente espacio de sociabilidad. La inmigración, la modificación de la fisonomía laboral y urbana, la redistribución funcional del espacio y la ubicación residencial de los grupos sociales condicionaron la evolución de la vida cotidiana y posibilitaron nuevos ámbitos de sociabilidad. Estudiar estos procesos en sus mutuas inter-influencias, así como el papel y la evolución de la Iglesia y los grupos católicos, constituye el núcleo de este trabajo. Palabras Clave. Franquismo, desarrollo económico, inmigración, sociabilidad, Iglesia católica. ABSTRACT: Within the framework of the profound economic and social transformations that took place in Spain after the 1950s and above all in the 1970s, commonly known as the «Spanish Miracle», this article analyses the changes affecting the «Basque Miracle» and its repercussions on the fields and levels that make up a new and very different space of sociability. Immigration, changes in the urban landscape and in labour, the functional redistribution of space and the residential location of the social groups conditioned the evolution of daily life and made possible new spheres of sociability. The study of these processes and how they affect each other, as well as that of the role and evolution of the Church and Catholic groups, form the nucleus of this work. Key Words: Francoism, economic development, immigration, sociability, catholic Church.