A short screener is valid for assessing mediterranean diet adherence among older spanish men and women

Ensuring the accuracy of dietary assessment instruments is paramount for interpreting diet-disease relationships. The present study assessed the relative and construct validity of the 14-point Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) used in the Prevencio´n con Dieta Mediterra´nea (PREDIMED) study, a primary prevention nutrition-intervention trial. A validated FFQ and the MEDAS were administered to 7146 participants of the PREDIMED study. The MEDASderived PREDIMED score correlated significantly with the corresponding FFQ PREDIMED score (r = 0.52; intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.51) and in the anticipated directions with the dietary intakes reported on the FFQ. Using Bland Altman"s analysis, the average MEDAS Mediterranean diet score estimate was 105% of the FFQ PREDIMED score estimate. Limits of agreement ranged between 57 and 153%. Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that a higher PREDIMED score related directly (P , 0.001) to HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) and inversely (P , 0.038) to BMI, waist circumference, TG, the TG:HDL-C ratio, fasting glucose, and the cholesterol:HDL-C ratio. The 10-y estimated coronary artery disease risk decreased as the PREDIMED score increased (P , 0.001). The MEDAS is a valid instrument for rapid estimation of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and may be useful in clinical practice.

A short screener is valid for assessing mediterranean diet adherence among older spanish men and women

Ensuring the accuracy of dietary assessment instruments is paramount for interpreting diet-disease relationships. The present study assessed the relative and construct validity of the 14-point Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) used in the Prevencio´n con Dieta Mediterra´nea (PREDIMED) study, a primary prevention nutrition-intervention trial. A validated FFQ and the MEDAS were administered to 7146 participants of the PREDIMED study. The MEDASderived PREDIMED score correlated significantly with the corresponding FFQ PREDIMED score (r = 0.52; intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.51) and in the anticipated directions with the dietary intakes reported on the FFQ. Using Bland Altman"s analysis, the average MEDAS Mediterranean diet score estimate was 105% of the FFQ PREDIMED score estimate. Limits of agreement ranged between 57 and 153%. Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that a higher PREDIMED score related directly (P , 0.001) to HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) and inversely (P , 0.038) to BMI, waist circumference, TG, the TG:HDL-C ratio, fasting glucose, and the cholesterol:HDL-C ratio. The 10-y estimated coronary artery disease risk decreased as the PREDIMED score increased (P , 0.001). The MEDAS is a valid instrument for rapid estimation of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and may be useful in clinical practice.

Engineering Geology for Society and Territory: volume 2: landslide processes

This book is one out of 8 IAEG XII Congress volumes, and deals with Landslide processes, including: field data and monitoring techniques, prediction and forecasting of landslide occurrence, regional landslide inventories and dating studies, modeling of slope instabilities and secondary hazards (e.g. impulse waves and landslide-induced tsunamis, landslide dam failures and breaching), hazard and risk assessment, earthquake and rainfall induced landslides, instabilities of volcanic edifices, remedial works and mitigation measures, development of innovative stabilization techniques and applicability to specific engineering geological conditions, use of geophysical techniques for landslide characterization and investigation of triggering mechanisms. Focuses is given to innovative techniques, well documented case studies in different environments, critical components of engineering geological and geotechnical investigations, hydrological and hydrogeological investigations, remote sensing and geophysical techniques, modeling of triggering, collapse, runout and landslide reactivation, geotechnical design and construction procedures in landslide zones, interaction of landslides with structures and infrastructures and possibility of domino effects. The Engineering Geology for Society and Territory volumes of the IAEG XII Congress held in Torino from September 15-19, 2014, analyze the dynamic role of engineering geology in our changing world and build on the four main themes of the congress: environment, processes, issues, and approaches.

Pattern of injury with a graded excitotoxic insult and ensuing chronic medial septal damage in the rat brain

Brain damage caused by an acute injury depends on the initial severity of the injury and the time elapsed after the injury. To determine whether these two variables activate common mechanisms, we compared the response of the rat medial septum to insult with a graded series of concentrations of a-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) with the time-course effects of a low dose of AMPA. For this purpose we conducted a dose-response study at concentrations of AMPA between 0.27 and 10.8 nmol to measure atrophy of the septal area, losses of cholinergic and GABAergic neurons, astroglial and microglial reactions, and calcification. Cholinergic neurons, whose loss paralleled the degree of septal atrophy produced by AMPA, are more sensitive than GABAergic neurons to the injury produced by AMPA. At doses of AMPA above 2.7 nmol, calcification and the degree of microglial reaction increased only in the GABAergic region of the septal area, whereas atrophy and neuronal loss reached a plateau. We chose the 2.7-nmol dose of AMPA to determine how these parameters were modified between 4 days and 6 months after injection. We found that atrophy and neuronal loss increased progressively through the 6-month study period, whereas astrogliosis ceased to be observed after 1 month, and calcium precipitates were never detected. We conclude that septal damage does not increase with the intensity of an excitotoxic insult. Rather, it progresses continuously after the insult. Because these two situations involve different mechanisms, short-term paradigms are inappropriate for interpreting the pathogenic mechanisms responsible for long-term neurodegenerative processes.

Resultados preliminares en la caracterización geométrica 3D de un litosoma arenoso de progradación deltaica mediante Georadar (GPR) (Fm. Arenisca de Roda, Eoceno, Cuenca de Graus-Tremp).

A set of GPR profiles have been recorded in order to determine the 3D geometry of a prograding delta-front sandbody (Roda sandstone formation, Eocene, Graus-Tremp basin). Common Mid Points (CMP) also have been recorded to obtain the velocity of the electromagnetic wave in ground. In order to build the topsurface of a 3D prism a set of topographic points have been acquired. Most of the GPR profiles are oriented parallel to the progradation direction (NNE-SSW) and show the expected geometries. The 3D prism has been built from the individual profiles, which shows the three dimensional geometry of the sandy lithosome.

Comission 49: Interplanetary plasma and heliosphere. TRIENNIAL REPORT 2006 - 2009

Commission 49 covers research on the solar wind, shocks and particle acceleration, both transient and steady-state, e.g., corotating, structures within the heliosphere, and the termination shock and boundary of the heliosphere. The present triennal report is particularly rich in important results and events. The crossing of the solar wind termination shock by Voyager 2 in 2007 is a highlight and a milestone that will certainly have important consequences for astrophysical processes in general (Section 7). The fiftieth anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (19571958), which is also the fiftieth anniversary of the birth of the Space Age, was marked not only by celebrations and a strong Education and Public Outreach Program, but also by efforts in coordinating present observations and in starting new scientific programs, particularly implying developing countries (Section 8). Studies of solar energetic particles (Section 3) and the related radio bursts (Section 4) benefited from new data from a number of spacecraft. The STEREO mission was launched in October 2006 and has obtained new results on 3-D aspects of the inner heliosphere. Meanwhile, solar cycle 24 is expected to become active soon, following what is already the deepest solar minimum of the space age...

The summer North Atlantic Oscillation in CMIP3 models and related uncertainties in projected summer drying in Europe

This paper discusses uncertainties in model projections of summer drying in the Euro-Mediterranean region related to errors and uncertainties in the simulation of the summer NAO (SNAO). The SNAO is the leading mode of summer SLP variability in the North Atlantic/European sector and modulates precipitation not only in the vicinity of the SLP dipole (northwest Europe) but also in the Mediterranean region. An analysis of CMIP3 models is conducted to determine the extent to which models reproduce the signature of the SNAO and its impact on precipitation and to assess the role of the SNAO in the projected precipitation reductions. Most models correctly simulate the spatial pattern of the SNAO and the dry anomalies in northwest Europe that accompany the positive phase. The models also capture the concurrent wet conditions in the Mediterranean, but the amplitude of this signal is too weak, especially in the east. This error is related to the poor simulation of the upper-level circulation response to a positive SNAO, namely the observed trough over the Balkans that creates potential instability and favors precipitation. The SNAO is generally projected to trend upwards in CMIP3 models, leading to a consistent signal of precipitation reduction in NW Europe, but the intensity of the trend varies greatly across models, resulting in large uncertainties in the magnitude of the projected drying. In the Mediterranean, because the simulated influence of the SNAO is too weak, no precipitation increase occurs even in the presence of a strong SNAO trend, reducing confidence in these projections.

El hòbbit, o viatge de l'anglès al català : Anàlisi contrastiva dels verbs de moviment

En aquest treball realitzarem una anàlisi contrastiva multilingüe de com s'expressa el moviment en un text en anglès i en la seva traducció al català, reforçant els resultats amb una comparació amb les corresponents traduccions al castellà, al francès i a l'alemany, per tal de comprovar si en el trajecte d'una llengua a l'altra es perd informació o no. Utilitzarem com a base la novel·la de John R. R. Tolkien, The hobbit or There and back again, i en concret el seu capítol sisè 'Fugir del foc i caure a les brases', ja que es tracta d'un text molt ric en escenes de moviment amb desplaçament.

Polygenic determinants of white matter volume derived from GWAS lack reproducibility in a replicate sample

A recent publication reported an exciting polygenic effect of schizophrenia (SCZ) risk variants, identified by a large genome-wide association study (GWAS), on total brain and white matter volumes in schizophrenic patients and, even more prominently, in healthy subjects. The aim of the present work was to replicate and then potentially extend these findings. According to the original publication, polygenic risk scores using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) information of SCZ GWAS (polygenic SCZ risk scores; PSS) were calculated in 122 healthy subjects, enrolled in a structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study. These scores were computed based on P-values and odds ratios available through the Psychiatric GWAS Consortium. In addition, polygenic white matter scores (PWM) were calculated, using the respective SNP subset in the original publication. None of the polygenic scores, either PSS or PWM, were found to be associated with total brain, white matter or gray matter volume in our replicate sample. Minor differences between the original and the present study that might have contributed to lack of reproducibility (but unlikely explain it fully), are number of subjects, ethnicity, age distribution, array technology, SNP imputation quality and MRI scanner type. In contrast to the original publication, our results do not reveal the slightest signal of association of the described sets of GWAS-identified SCZ risk variants with brain volumes in adults. Caution is indicated in interpreting studies building on polygenic risk scores without replication sample.

Sexual foraging segregation in South American sea lions increases during the pre-breeding period in the La Plata River plume

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in skin and bone of South American sea lions from Brazil and Uruguay were analysed to test the hypothesis that trophic overlap between the sexes is lower during the pre-breeding season than throughout the rest of the year. The isotopic values of skin and bone were used to infer the trophic relationships between the sexes during the pre-breeding period and year round, respectively. Prey species were also analysed to establish a baseline necessary for interpreting the stable isotope ratios of skin and bone. Standard ellipse areas, estimated using Bayesian inference in the SIBER routine of the SIAR package in R, suggested that males and females used a wide diversity of foraging strategies throughout the year and that no differences existed between the sexes. However, the diversity of foraging strategies was largely reduced during the pre-breeding period, with all the individuals of each sex adopting similar strategies, but with the two sexes differing considerably in stable isotope values and the ellipse areas of males and females not overlapping at all. Nevertheless, the results revealed a general increase in the consumption of pelagic prey by both sexes during the pre-breeding period. The progressive crowding of individuals in the areas surrounding the breeding rookeries during the pre-breeding period could lead to an increase in the local population density, which could explain the above reported changes.

Aplicació de tècniques geofísiques electromagnètiques a la localització de zones afectades per abocaments incontrolats de residus

Increase of the metropolitan area of cities provoking a progressive settlement of zones that previously had a different territorial use. These zones are usually located within city houndaries and for many years have been affected hy the waste of many kinds of residues. Qualitative analysis of the electrical behaviour of soil, based on maps and cross sections of apparent conductivity, allows us to locate anomalies generated by the wastes. Moreover, the electrornagnetic techniques (EM-31 and EM-34 Geonics devices) are cheaper than other survey methods. Two examples in the campus of the University of Girona, in the southern area of Girona city, illustrate the environmental problem and the applicability of the geophysical method

Métodos de reconocimiento del subsuelo

The aim of this workshop is to present the main methods of subsoil studies (namely mechanical and geophysical methods) to the Earth Sciences professorate. These methods frequently involve the use of specific material. The different methods are usually taught in the classroom where there is no real contact between the students and the equipment. Several activities, all of them taking place in surrounding areas of the university campus of Girona, will provide the assistants to the workshop with the opportunity of making measurements with different equipment. These activities will be made in the field so as to contribute to the resolution of a problem which will have been previously proposed. The problems presented are situations, most of them real, when subsoil investigation techniques are usually used. These cases have been employed as teaching-learning strategies with university and second grade students in the area of Girona. Finally, some examples of exercises involving the treatment of data obtained through subsoil investigation techniques are also presented to complement the workshop

Ewing sarcoma of the rib: respiratory tract infection as initial symptoms in a 14-year-old boy. Functional medical imaging findings

Ewing sarcoma or primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET) of bone is the second most common pediatric malignant bone tumor. The median age at diagnosis is 15 years and there is a male predilection of 1.5/1. The authors present the case of a 14-year-old boy with Ewing sarcoma situated on the left ninth rib which was being investigated for respiratory tract infection. Pleurisy is the most common misdiagnosis. Our case illustrates the importance of recognizing exceptional features when interpreting FDG PET or scintigraphy to prevent the misinterpretation of metastases as other etiologies, such as infection.