Complex organochlorine pesticide mixtures as determinant factor for breast cancer risk: a population-based case-control study in the Canary Islands (Spain)

[EN] Background: All the relevant risk factors contributing to breast cancer etiology are not fully known. Exposure to organochlorine pesticides has been linked to an increased incidence of the disease, although not all data have been consistent. Most published studies evaluated the exposure to organochlorines individually, ignoring the potential effects exerted by the mixtures of chemicals. Methods: This population-based study was designed to evaluate the profile of mixtures of organochlorines detected in 103 healthy women and 121 women diagnosed with breast cancer from Gran Canaria Island, and the relation between the exposure to these compounds and breast cancer risk.Results: The most prevalent mixture of organochlorines among healthy women was the combination of lindane and endrin, and this mixture was not detected in any affected women. Breast cancer patients presented more frequently a combination of aldrin, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane (DDD), and this mixture was not found in any healthy woman. After adjusting for covariables, the risk of breast cancer was moderately associated with DDD (OR = 1.008, confidence interval 95% 1.001-1.015, p = 0.024).Conclusions: This study indicates that healthy women show a very different profile of organochlorine pesticide mixtures than breast cancer patients, suggesting that organochlorine pesticide mixtures could play a relevant role in breast cancer risk.

Molecular method for the characterization of Coxiella burnetii from clinical and environmental samples: variability of genotypes in Spain

[EN] Background. Coxiella burnetii is a highly clonal microorganism which is difficult to culture, requiring BSL3 conditions for its propagation. This leads to a scarce availability of isolates worldwide. On the other hand, published methods of characterization have delineated up to 8 different genomic groups and 36 genotypes. However, all these methodologies, with the exception of one that exhibited limited discriminatory power (3 genotypes), rely on performing between 10 and 20 PCR amplifications or sequencing long fragments of DNA, which make their direct application to clinical samples impracticable and leads to a scarce accessibility of data on the circulation of C. burnetii genotypes. Results: To assess the variability of this organism in Spain, we have developed a novel method that consists of a multiplex (8 targets) PCR and hybridization with specific probes that reproduce the previous classification of this organism into 8 genomic groups, and up to 16 genotypes. It allows for a direct characterization from clinical and environmental samples in a single run, which will help in the study of the different genotypes circulating in wild and domestic cycles as well as from sporadic human cases and outbreaks. The method has been validated with reference isolates. A high variability of C. burnetii has been found in Spain among 90 samples tested, detecting 10 different genotypes, being those adaA negative associated with acute Q fever cases presenting as fever of intermediate duration with liver involvement and with chronic cases. Genotypes infecting humans are also found in sheep, goats, rats, wild boar and ticks, and the only genotype found in cattle has never been found among our clinical samples. Conclusions: This newly developed methodology has permitted to demonstrate that C. burnetii is highly variable in Spain. With the data presented here, cattle seem not to participate in the transmission of C. burnetii to humans in the samples studied, while sheep, goats, wild boar, rats and ticks share genotypes with the human population.

Genetic characterization and molecular identification of the bloodmeal sources of the potential bluetongue vector Culicoides obsoletus in the Canary Islands, Spain

[EN] Background: Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) biting midges are vectors for a diversity of pathogens including bluetongue virus (BTV) that generate important economic losses. BTV has expanded its range in recent decades, probably due to the expansion of its main vector and the presence of other autochthonous competent vectors. Although the Canary Islands are still free of bluetongue disease (BTD), Spain and Europe have had to face up to a spread of bluetongue with disastrous consequences. Therefore, it is essential to identify the distribution of biting midges and understand their feeding patterns in areas susceptible to BTD. To that end, we captured biting midges on two farms in the Canary Islands (i) to identify the midge species in question and characterize their COI barcoding region and (ii) to ascertain the source of their bloodmeals using molecular tools.Methods: Biting midges were captured using CDC traps baited with a 4-W blacklight (UV) bulb on Gran Canaria and on Tenerife. Biting midges were quantified and identified according to their wing patterns. A 688 bp segment of the mitochondrial COI gene of 20 biting midges (11 from Gran Canaria and 9 from Tenerife) were PCR amplified using the primers LCO1490 and HCO2198. Moreover, after selected all available females showing any rest of blood in their abdomen, a nested-PCR approach was used to amplify a fragment of the COI gene from vertebrate DNA contained in bloodmeals. The origin of bloodmeals was identified by comparison with the nucleotide-nucleotide basic alignment search tool (BLAST). Results: The morphological identification of 491 female biting midges revealed the presence of a single morphospecies belonging to the Obsoletus group. When sequencing the barcoding region of the 20 females used to check genetic variability, we identified two haplotypes differing in a single base. Comparison analysis using the nucleotide-nucleotide basic alignment search tool (BLAST) showed that both haplotypes belong to Culicoides obsoletus, a potential BTV vector. As well, using molecular tools we identified the feeding sources of 136 biting midges and were able to confirm that C. obsoletus females feed on goats and sheep on both islands.Conclusions: These results confirm that the feeding pattern of C. obsoletus is a potentially important factor in BTV transmission to susceptible hosts in case of introduction into the archipelago. Consequently, in the Canary Islands it is essential to maintain vigilance of Culicoides-transmitted viruses such as BTV and the novel Schmallenberg virus.

Forecasting the need for medical specialists in Spain: application of a system dynamics model

[EN] Background: Spain has gone from a surplus to a shortage of medical doctors in very few years. Medium and long-term planning for health professionals has become a high priority for health authorities. Methods: We created a supply and demand/need simulation model for 43 medical specialties using system dynamics. The model includes demographic, education and labour market variables. Several scenarios were defined. Variables controllable by health planners can be set as parameters to simulate different scenarios. The model calculates the supply and the deficit or surplus. Experts set the ratio of specialists needed per 1000 inhabitants with a Delphi method. Results: In the scenario of the baseline model with moderate population growth, the deficit of medical specialists will grow from 2% at present (2800 specialists) to 14.3% in 2025 (almost 21 000). The specialties with the greatest medium-term shortages are Anesthesiology, Orthopedic and Traumatic Surgery, Pediatric Surgery, Plastic Aesthetic and Reparatory Surgery, Family and Community Medicine, Pediatrics, Radiology, and Urology. Conclusions: The model suggests the need to increase the number of students admitted to medical school. Training itineraries should be redesigned to facilitate mobility among specialties. In the meantime, the need to make more flexible the supply in the short term is being filled by the immigration of physicians from new members of the European Union and from Latin America.

Meridional changes in water mass distributions off NW Africa during November 2007/2008

[EN] An optimum multiparameter analysis was applied to a data set for the eastern boundary of the North Atlantic subtropical gyre, gathered during November of two consecutive years and spanning from 16 to 36º N. This data set covers over 20º of latitude with good meridional and zonal resolution over the whole coastal transition zone. The contribution from six water types in the depth range between 100 and 2000 m is solved. In the 100 to 700 m depth range the central waters of southern and northern origin meet abruptly at the Cape Verde Frontal Zone. This front traditionally has been reported to stretch from Cape Blanc, at about 21.5º N, to the Cape Verde Islands, but in our case it penetrates as far as 24º N over the continental slope. South of 21º N latitude we actually find a less saline and more oxygenated variety of South Atlantic Central Water, which we ascribe to less diluted equatorial waters. In the 700 to 1500 m depth range the dominant water type is a diluted form of Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW), whose influence smoothly disappears north of the Canary Islands as it is replaced by Mediterranean Water (MW); at latitudes where both water masses coexist, we observe MW offshore while AAIW is found near-shore. North Atlantic Deep Water is the dominating water type below about 1300/1700 m depth south/north of the Canary Islands; this abrupt change in depth suggests the existence of different paths for the deep waters reaching both sides of the archipelago.

An assessment of the concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds in wastewater treatment plants on the island of Gran Canaria(Spain)

[EN] An assessment of the concentrations of thirteen different therapeutic pharmaceutical compounds was conducted on water samples obtained from different wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) using solid phase extraction and high- and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry detection (HPLC-MS/MS and UHPLC-MS/MS), was carried out. The target compounds included ketoprofen and naproxen (anti-inflammatories), bezafibrate (lipid-regulating), carbamazepine (anticonvulsant), metamizole (analgesic), atenolol (?-blocker), paraxanthine (stimulant), fluoxetine (antidepressant), and levofloxacin, norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin and sarafloxacin (fluoroquinolone antibiotics). The relative standard deviations obtained in method were below 11%, while the detection and quantification limits were in the range of 0.3 ? 97.4 ng·L-1 and 1.1 ? 324.7 ng·L-1, respectively. The water samples were collected from two different WWTPs located on the island of Gran Canaria in Spain over a period of one year. The first WWTP (denoted as WWTP1) used conventional activated sludge for the treatment of wastewater, while the other plant (WWTP2) employed a membrane bioreactor system for wastewater treatment. Most of the pharmaceutical compounds detected in this study during the sampling periods were found to have concentrations ranging between 0.02 and 34.81 ?g·L-1.

Reproductive phenology of three species of Gelidiales (Rhodophyta) in two macroalgal communities from Tenerife (Atlantic Ocean, Canary Islands, Spain)

[EN] The reproductive phenology of three species of Gelidiales, Gelidium canariense, Gelidium arbuscula and Pterocladiella capillacea, was analysed seasonally for a period of one year in two localities on the West coast of Tenerife Atlantic Ocean, Canary Islands, Spain. Considerations are provided on sex ratio, maximum length and branch order of uprights and on the length of the thalli for each sexual and asexual phase of the Canary Islands populations. The three species were characterized by a high percentage of tetrasporophytes, while female and male gametophytes have been observed only in little proportion. Only G. canariense showed gametophytes in all seasons while the occurrence of gametophytes in G. arbuscula and Pterocladiella capillacea demonstrated a clear seasonality.

Phenolic Constituents, Antioxidant and Preliminary Antimycoplasmic Activities of Leaf Skin and Flowers of Aloe vera (L.) Burm. f. (syn. A. barbadensis Mill.) from the Canary Islands (Spain)

[EN]The methanol extracts of leaf skins and flowers of Aloe vera from the Canary Islands were analyzed for their phenolic profiles and screened for their antioxidant and antimycoplasmic activities. The use of reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) allowed the identification of 18 phenolic constituents. Leaf skin extracts were characterized by the abundance of catechin, sinapic acid and quercitrin. Gentisic acid, epicatechin and quercitrin were the most prominent phenolic compounds of the flowers. The in vitro antioxidant activities determined by using the 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric antioxidant reducing power (FRAP) assays revealed that both extracts exhibited antioxidant activity, being the leaf skin extract the most active fraction. The leaf skin extract was also found to be active against the microbial strains tested. Therefore, A. vera extracts from leaf skin and flowers can be considered as good natural antioxidant sources.

The structure of planktonic communities under variable coastal upwelling conditions off Cape Ghir (31ºN), in the Canary Current System (NW Africa)

Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Facultad de Ciencias del Mar. Programa de doctorado en Oceanografía. Diploma de Estudios Avanzados

Lithogenic flux and textural analysis of the sediment trap samples collected at 150m in the Canary basin, Spain

Trabajo Finde Título para obtener el Grado en Ciencia del Mar

Assessment of the presence of pharmaceutical compounds in seawater samples from coastal area of Gran Canaria Island (Spain)

[EN]This study presents the evaluation of seven pharmaceutical compounds belonging to different commonly used therapeutic classes in seawater samples from coastal areas of Gran Canaria Island. The target compounds include atenolol (antihypertensive), acetaminophen (analgesic), norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin (antibiotics), carbamazepine (antiepileptic) and ketoprofen and diclofenac (anti-inflammatory). Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used for the extraction and preconcentration of the samples, and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used for the determination of the compounds. Under optimal conditions, the recoveries obtained were in the range of 78.3% to 98.2%, and the relative standard deviations were less than 11.8%. The detection and quantification limits of the method were in the ranges of 0.1–2.8 and 0.3–9.3 ng·L−1, respectively. The developed method was applied to evaluate the presence of these pharmaceutical compounds in seawater from four outfalls in Gran Canaria Island (Spain) during one year. Ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin were found in a large number of samples in a concentration range of 9.0–3551.7 ng·L−1. Low levels of diclofenac, acetaminophen and ketoprofen were found sporadically.