Anàlisi, diseny i implementació d'un aplicació de gestió d'espais fent servir l'arquitectura J2EE

L'objectiu principal d'aquest treball és exposar tots els passos seguits per a desenvolupar un projecte (anàlisi, disseny, implementació i proves) que utilitza una tecnologia determinada: l'arquitectura J2EE, una arquitectura escalable que permet un desenvolupament simplificat dels projectes d'aplicacions. El projecte escollit és una aplicació de gestió d'espais, la finalitat del qual és gestionar els espais que pertanyen a una entitat multiespacial, com ara una universitat o un hospital.

Multiple refugia and barriers explain the phylogeography of the Valais shrew, Sorex antinorii (Mammalia: Soricomorpha), Sorex antinorii (Mammalia: Soricomorpha)

The aim of the present study was to investigate the genetic structure of the Valais shrew (Sorex antinorii) by a combined phylogeographical and landscape genetic approach, and thereby to infer the locations of glacial refugia and establish the influence of geographical barriers. We sequenced part of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cyt b) gene of 179 individuals of S. antinorii sampled across the entire species' range. Six specimens attributed to S. arunchi were included in the analysis. The phylogeographical pattern was assessed by Bayesian molecular phylogenetic reconstruction, population genetic analyses, and a species distribution modelling (SDM)-based hindcasting approach. We also used landscape genetics (including isolation-by-resistance) to infer the determinants of current intra-specific genetic structure. The phylogeographical analysis revealed shallow divergence among haplotypes and no clear substructure within S. antinorii. The starlike structure of the median-joining network is consistent with population expansion from a single refugium, probably located in the Apennines. Long branches observed on the same network also suggest that another refugium may have existed in the north-eastern part of Italy. This result is consistent with SDM, which also suggests several habitable areas for S. antinorii in the Italian peninsula during the LGM. Therefore S. antinorii appears to have occupied disconnected glacial refugia in the Italian peninsula, supporting previous data for other species showing multiple refugia within southern refugial areas. By coupling genetic analyses and SDM, we were able to infer how past climatic suitability contributed to genetic divergence of populations. The genetic differentiation shown in the present study does not support the specific status of S. arunchi.

Ontologies geogràfiques turístiques de punts d'interès i documents associats

Aquest document exposa la elaboració del Projecte de fi de carrera "Ontologies Turístiques Geogràfiques", corresponent a l'àrea de XML i Web semàntica dels estudis d'Enginyeria Informàtica de la Universitat Oberta de Catalunya que tracta de la creació d'una ontologia turística geogràfica que permeti etiquetar els fitxers que contenguin informació sobre els punts d'interès per a poder representar els aspectes de l'àmbit turístic.

Trypanocidal constituents in plants: 7. Mammea-type coumarins

Calophyllum brasiliense and Mammea americana (Clusiaceae) are two trees from the tropical rain forests of the American continent. A previous screening showed high trypanocidal activity in the extracts of these species. Several mammea-type coumarins, triterpenoids and biflavonoids were isolated from the leaves of C. brasiliense. Mammea A/AA was obtained from the fruit peels of M. americana. These compounds were tested in vitro against epimastigotes and trypomastigotes of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas disease. The most potent compounds were mammea A/BA, A/BB, A/AA, A/BD and B/BA, with MC100 values in the range of 15 to 90 g/ml. Coumarins with a cyclized ,-dimethylallyl substituent on C-6, such as mammea B/BA, cyclo F + B/BB cyclo F, and isomammeigin, showed MC100 values > 200 g/ml. Several active coumarins were also tested against normal human lymphocytes in vitro, which showed that mammea A/AA and A/BA were not toxic. Other compounds from C. brasiliense, such as the triterpenoids, friedelin, canophyllol, the biflavonoid amentoflavone, and protocatechuic and shikimic acids, were inactive against the epimastigotes. The isopropylidenedioxy derivative of shikimic acid was inactive, and its structure was confirmed by X-ray diffraction. Our results suggest that mammea-type coumarins could be a valuable source of trypanocidal compounds.

Políticas de promoción del acceso abierto en la Universidad de Salamanca

L'any 2009 va ser un any de compromisos fets realitat en polítiques de promoció de l'Accés Obert per part de la Universitat de Salamanca. L'objectiu d'aquesta comunicació és, d'una banda, fer balanç dels èxits obtinguts en 2009 i, de l'altra, exposar la repercussió positiva que ha tingut tot el desenvolupament d'aquesta política de promoció d'accés obert al dipòsit institucional de la Universitat de Salamanca (Gredos).

Repositorios en la nube

Las aplicaciones que se distribuyen a través de Internet como un servicio (Software as a service, SaaS) y el hardware y software de base de los centros de datos (Nube, Cloud) son los dos elementos de la ecuación llamada cloud computing. En este paradigma, se juegan tres roles principales: proveedor del cloud, usuario del cloud que a su vez es proveedor de servicio (como los repositorios) y los usuarios finales del servicio. Los primeros se benefician de la especialización y las economías de escala; mientras que los segundos de una mayor elasticidad en el aprovisionamiento. En este sentido, DuraSpace ha creado un piloto llamado DuraCloud para probar el uso de tecnologías de almacenamiento en la nube para la preservación de contenido digital. El taller pretende describir los conceptos básicos del cloud, con ejemplos de donde se está usando este tipo de tecnología; y el impacto que puede tener en los repositorios digitales.

10 años de repositorios cooperativos

El 1999 van començar els treballs que van culminar amb la posada en funcionament de TDX / TDX, el primer dipòsit creat a Espanya. Des de llavors la cooperació entre les universitats de Catalunya i la Biblioteca de Catalunya ha permès posar en funcionament 5 repositoris cooperatius (TDX / TDR, RECERCAT, RACO, MDC i MDX). Això ha estat possible per una divisió de tasques en la qual les biblioteques són les responsables de la introducció de continguts, el CESCA de la preparació del programari i el maquinari i el CBUC de la coordinació dels processos.Aquest taller dividit en 4 parts, té la finalitat d'explicar les diferents fases que han viscut els repositoris cooperatius, les actuacions dutes a terme en aquests 10 anys per omplir de contingut (estàndards, aspectes legals, ajuts de digitalització, etc.), La experiència d'una de les universitats -la UPF- que participa en aquests dipòsits cooperatius i que alhora disposa del seu propi i la infraestructura tècnica en la qual s'han desenvolupat i evolucionat.

Deficiencia nutricional de yodo en gestantes pertenecientes al distrito sanitario Sierra de Huelva-Andévalo, sur de España

Background. Iodine is an essential trace element implicated in synthesis of thyroid hormones. Iodine requirements vary throughout life. Yhis iodine requirement is increased during pregnancy and breastfeeding. In a previous study carried out by our group in 2008, we detected an iodine-deficient area in the province of Huelva, specially in dictrict Sierra de Huelva-Andévalo by means of neonatal TSH determinations. Objective. To reinforce the iodine supplementation campaign and its impact on their newborns in order to assess nutrition iodine status in 'pregnant women using questionnaire and ioduria determination. Material and methods. This study has been jointly carried out by Congenital Hypothiroidism Unit of the Clinical Biochemistry Department of the Virgen Macarena University Hosplital (Seville) and the Gynecology and Clinical Analysis Unit of the Río Tinto Hospital (Huelva) during two years. We studied 313 pregnant women. All of them filled out a personal questionnaire to know the iodine nutritional status in their area. Ioduria was determined by high-resolution liquid chromatography. Data from pregnant and results of the studied variables were analyzed with SPSS v.13.0. Conclusions. Pregnant women from the sanitary district Sierra de Huelva-Andévalo present a median for ioduria which corresponds to an insufficient iodine intake according to the WHO classification. The questionnaire suggest that this iodine deficiency is consequence of an insufficient iodine intake and a low adherence to the treatment.

Eosinophil cationic protein is not only a distinctive eosinophil protein

We read with interest the article by Qiu et al (Thorax 2007;62:475–82). In this paper, neutrophils and eosinophils were identified using mouse anti-human neutrophil elastase and anti-eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), both monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). mAbs against ECP have been used to detect total eosinophils, but immunostaining techniques evidenced that the number of ECP+ cells was higher than the number of eosinophils.1 Recent studies show that ECP is not only a distinctive eosinophil protein, but has been found in neutrophils.1–3

Rac2 GTPase activation by angiotensin II is modulated by Ca2C/calcineurin and mitogen-activated protein kinases in human neutrophils

Angiotensin II (Ang II) highly stimulates superoxide anion production by neutrophils. The G-protein Rac2 modulates the activity of NADPH oxidase in response to various stimuli. Here, we describe that Ang II induced both Rac2 translocation from the cytosol to the plasma membrane and Rac2 GTP-binding activity. Furthermore, Clostridium difficile toxin A, an inhibitor of the Rho-GTPases family Rho, Rac and Cdc42, prevented Ang II-elicited O2-/ROS production, phosphorylation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) p38, extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase 1/2, and Rac2 activation. Rac2 GTPase inhibition by C. difficile toxin A was accompanied by a robust reduction of the cytosolic Ca(2)(+) elevation induced by Ang II in human neutrophils. Furthermore, SB203580 and PD098059 act as inhibitors of p38MAPK and ERK1/2 respectively, wortmannin, an inhibitor of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase, and cyclosporin A, a calcineurin inhibitor, hindered both translocation of Rac2 from the cytosol to the plasma membrane and enhancement of Rac2 GTP-binding elicited by Ang II. These results provide evidence that the activation of Rac2 by Ang II is exerted through multiple signalling pathways, involving Ca(2)(+)/calcineurin and protein kinases, the elucidation of which should be insightful in the design of new therapies aimed at reversing the inflammation of vessel walls found in a number of cardiovascular diseases.

Cluster recognition in spatial-temporal sequences: The case of forest fires

Forest fire sequences can be modelled as a stochastic point process where events are characterized by their spatial locations and occurrence in time. Cluster analysis permits the detection of the space/time pattern distribution of forest fires. These analyses are useful to assist fire-managers in identifying risk areas, implementing preventive measures and conducting strategies for an efficient distribution of the firefighting resources. This paper aims to identify hot spots in forest fire sequences by means of the space-time scan statistics permutation model (STSSP) and a geographical information system (GIS) for data and results visualization. The scan statistical methodology uses a scanning window, which moves across space and time, detecting local excesses of events in specific areas over a certain period of time. Finally, the statistical significance of each cluster is evaluated through Monte Carlo hypothesis testing. The case study is the forest fires registered by the Forest Service in Canton Ticino (Switzerland) from 1969 to 2008. This dataset consists of geo-referenced single events including the location of the ignition points and additional information. The data were aggregated into three sub-periods (considering important preventive legal dispositions) and two main ignition-causes (lightning and anthropogenic causes). Results revealed that forest fire events in Ticino are mainly clustered in the southern region where most of the population is settled. Our analysis uncovered local hot spots arising from extemporaneous arson activities. Results regarding the naturally-caused fires (lightning fires) disclosed two clusters detected in the northern mountainous area.

Kallikrein genes are associated with lupus and glomerular basement membrane-specific antibody-induced nephritis in mice and humans.

Immune-mediated nephritis contributes to disease in systemic lupus erythematosus, Goodpasture syndrome (caused by antibodies specific for glomerular basement membrane [anti-GBM antibodies]), and spontaneous lupus nephritis. Inbred mouse strains differ in susceptibility to anti-GBM antibody-induced and spontaneous lupus nephritis. This study sought to clarify the genetic and molecular factors that maybe responsible for enhanced immune-mediated renal disease in these models. When the kidneys of 3 mouse strains sensitive to anti-GBM antibody-induced nephritis were compared with those of 2 control strains using microarray analysis, one-fifth of the underexpressed genes belonged to the kallikrein gene family,which encodes serine esterases. Mouse strains that upregulated renal and urinary kallikreins exhibited less evidence of disease. Antagonizing the kallikrein pathway augmented disease, while agonists dampened the severity of anti-GBM antibody-induced nephritis. In addition, nephritis-sensitive mouse strains had kallikrein haplotypes that were distinct from those of control strains, including several regulatory polymorphisms,some of which were associated with functional consequences. Indeed, increased susceptibility to anti-GBM antibody-induced nephritis and spontaneous lupus nephritis was achieved by breeding mice with a genetic interval harboring the kallikrein genes onto a disease-resistant background. Finally, both human SLE and spontaneous lupus nephritis were found to be associated with kallikrein genes, particularly KLK1 and the KLK3 promoter, when DNA SNPs from independent cohorts of SLE patients and controls were compared. Collectively, these studies suggest that kallikreins are protective disease-associated genes in anti-GBM antibody-induced nephritis and lupus.

Assessment of drug-induced hepatotoxicity in clinical practice: a challenge for gastroenterologists.

Currently, pharmaceutical preparations are serious contributors to liver disease; hepatotoxicity ranking as the most frequent cause for acute liver failure and post-commercialization regulatory decisions. The diagnosis of hepatotoxicity remains a difficult task because of the lack of reliable markers for use in general clinical practice. To incriminate any given drug in an episode of liver dysfunction is a step-by-step process that requires a high degree of suspicion, compatible chronology, awareness of the drug's hepatotoxic potential, the exclusion of alternative causes of liver damage and the ability to detect the presence of subtle data that favors a toxic etiology. This process is time-consuming and the final result is frequently inaccurate. Diagnostic algorithms may add consistency to the diagnostic process by translating the suspicion into a quantitative score. Such scales are useful since they provide a framework that emphasizes the features that merit attention in cases of suspected hepatic adverse reaction as well. Current efforts in collecting bona fide cases of drug-induced hepatotoxicity will make refinements of existing scales feasible. It is now relatively easy to accommodate relevant data within the scoring system and to delete low-impact items. Efforts should also be directed toward the development of an abridged instrument for use in evaluating suspected drug-induced hepatotoxicity at the very beginning of the diagnosis and treatment process when clinical decisions need to be made. The instrument chosen would enable a confident diagnosis to be made on admission of the patient and treatment to be fine-tuned as further information is collected.

Randomized phase 3 trial of fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide alone or followed by Paclitaxel for early breast cancer.

BACKGROUND Taxanes are among the most active drugs for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, and, as a consequence, they have also been studied in the adjuvant setting. METHODS After breast cancer surgery, women with lymph node-positive disease were randomly assigned to treatment with fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FEC) or with FEC followed by weekly paclitaxel (FEC-P). The primary endpoint of study-5-year disease-free survival (DFS)-was assessed by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Secondary endpoints included overall survival and analysis of the prognostic and predictive value of clinical and molecular (hormone receptors by immunohistochemistry and HER2 by fluorescence in situ hybridization) markers. Associations and interactions were assessed with a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model for DFS for the following covariates: age, menopausal status, tumor size, lymph node status, type of chemotherapy, tumor size, positive lymph nodes, HER2 status, and hormone receptor status. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS Among the 1246 eligible patients, estimated rates of DFS at 5 years were 78.5% in the FEC-P arm and 72.1% in the FEC arm (difference = 6.4%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6% to 11.2%; P = .006). FEC-P treatment was associated with a 23% reduction in the risk of relapse compared with FEC treatment (146 relapses in the 614 patients in the FEC-P arm vs 193 relapses in the 632 patients in the FEC arm, hazard ratio [HR] = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.62 to 0.95; P = .022) and a 22% reduction in the risk of death (73 and 95 deaths, respectively, HR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.57 to 1.06; P = .110). Among the 928 patients for whom tumor samples were centrally analyzed, type of chemotherapy (FEC vs FEC-P) (P = .017), number of involved axillary lymph nodes (P < .001), tumor size (P = .020), hormone receptor status (P = .004), and HER2 status (P = .006) were all associated with DFS. We found no statistically significant interaction between HER2 status and paclitaxel treatment or between hormone receptor status and paclitaxel treatment. CONCLUSIONS Among patients with operable breast cancer, FEC-P treatment statistically significantly reduced the risk of relapse compared with FEC as adjuvant therapy.