Alberto Sols Biomedical Research Institute
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Analysis of the chorological affiliation and the status of the vegetation cover of the cork oak groves of the Sierra de Espadán (Castellón, Spain)
No full textEl Parque Natural de la Sierra de Espadán se sitúa en la Comunidad
Autónoma Valenciana (España). La mayor parte del mismo presenta un
paisaje cultural caracterizado por la presencia de un bosque de alcornoque
(Quercus suber L., 1753) favorecido por el ser humano al ser
explotado para la obtención de corcho. Este intenso y prolongado manejo
del territorio ha dado lugar a una cierta transformación de la cubierta
vegetal original favoreciendo a algunas especies y controlando
a otras. A través de varias estancias en la Hacienda Mosquera, dentro
de la mencionada sierra, se abordó el inventariado sistemático de 10
parcelas representativas del alcornocal. En este trabajo se muestra la
caracterización biogeográfica de dicho paisaje, así como los resultados
del análisis del estatus de conservación y la filiación corológica del
listado de especies detectado. Los resultados revelan un gran número
de especies comunes o con bajo nivel de amenaza fruto de esa forma
de gestión. Por su parte, predominan las filiaciones de componente
mediterráneo (63 %), mientras que son bajas las subcosmopolitas y
plurirregionales (5 %). También resulta interesante observar que el componente
eurosiberiano (20 %) es mayor de lo que podría preverseThe Sierra Espadán Natural Park is located in the Autonomous Region
of Valencia (Spain). Most of it has a cultural landscape characterised by
the presence of a cork oak forest (Quercus suber L., 1753), boosted by
humans, who have exploited it to obtain cork. This intense and prolonged
management of the territory has led to a certain transformation of
the original vegetation cover, favouring some species and controlling
others. A systematic inventory of 10 representative plots of cork oak
forest was undertaken, which required several stays in the Hacienda
Mosquera within the aforementioned mountain range. This study shows
the biogeographical characterisation of this landscape and presents the
results of the analysis of the conservation status and the chorological
affiliation of the list of species detected. The results reveal a large
number of common species or species with a low level of threat due to
this form of management. On the other hand, Mediterranean component affiliations predominate (63 %), while sub-cosmopolitan and pluri-regional affiliations are low (5 %), although
those components with wide territorial ranges are low. It is also interesting to note that the Euro-Siberian
component (20 %) is higher than might be expecte
The Potential of Blue–Green Infrastructures (BGIs) to Boost Urban Resilience: Examples from Spain
No full textUrban areas globally are increasingly challenged by climate change, rapid urbanization,
and environmental degradation, necessitating innovative solutions for sustainable
development. Blue–Green Infrastructures (BGIs) have emerged as a promising approach,
integrating water management systems with natural vegetative elements to create resilient
urban landscapes. By fostering synergy between urban ecosystems and built environments,
BGIs offer multifunctional benefits including flood mitigation, heat reduction, and biodiversity
enhancement. This article examines the role of BGIs in boosting urban resilience,
highlighting several exemplary projects in Spain in a qualitative and quantitative way that
demonstrate its potential to transform urban areas into sustainable and adaptive space
Assessment of scalable fractionation methodologies to produce concentrated lauric acid from Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae fat
No full textIn the present study, different methodologies with potential scalability and environmental
friendliness, such as winterization, supercritical fluid extraction, and multistage
distillation, were evaluated for lauric acid concentration. In all cases, to facilitate fractionation,
the transformation of triacylglycerols into free fatty acids or fatty acid ethyl esters was
required as a previous step. For the winterization experimental assays, the amount and type
of solvent was studied, resulting in a product containing ~65% lauric acid with a recovery
of ~81% using a 1:10 oil-to-solvent ratio with hexane. On the other hand, the experimental
extraction with supercritical carbon dioxide in a counter current packed column at 55 ◦C,
115 bar, and 70 g CO2/min, resulted in a product composed of ~80% lauric acid as ethyl
ester with a recovery of ~85%. Finally, flash and multistage distillation were analysed using
process simulation (Aspen Plus V14), demonstrating that this methodology can achieve 80%
recovery with high purity (lauric acid: 96.7%; ethyl laurate: 97.4%), but a high vacuum is
required to prevent thermal degradation of the product (lauric acid: 0.2 mbar; ethyl laurate:
1.1 mbar). Overall, the employed methodologies proved highly efficient in concentrating
lauric acid, yielding a product of commercial interest and high added value.This research was funded by the Spanish National Plans of Aquaculture of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, project ACUINSECT (Optimization of insect flours as sustainable ingredient for aquaculture feed
El mosaico de regadíos y secanos de la comarca de Las Vegas en la región urbana de Madrid. Un sistema agroalimentario en la búsqueda de su territorialidad y buen gobierno
No full textEsta investigación ha sido financiada por PID2019-105711RB-C61 / AEI/10.13039/501100011033, "Sistemas agroalimentarios multifuncionales y territorializados en España. Conceptuación y gobernanza. Análisis de casos en Madrid y Castilla-La Mancha", Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovació
Ecological niche models based on occurrence records of the amphibian chytrid fungus overestimate lethal chytridiomycosis risk
No full text1. Ecological niche models (ENMs) have been used frequently to predict the distribution and future spread of the pathogenic chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Based on the assumption that chytridiomycosis outbreaks are most likely to occur where the conditions are ideal for Bd, many studies have identified high-risk areas for chytridiomycosis and its associated mortality risk using only known Bd occurrences. However, the presence of a pathogen does not necessarily indicate high infection, disease or associated mortality.
2. We used the BIOMOD2 package implemented in R, 19 bioclimatic variables, and267 locality records, covering three levels of infection progress (occurrence, high infection loads and disease-associated mortality), to calculate the potential areas where: (1) Bd is likely to be present, (2) amphibians are prone to harbour high infections and (3) chytridiomycosis-related mortalities are likely to occur. We evaluate discrepancies among the three potential areas projected by the models, encompassing their spatial extent and associated environmental conditions.
3. When all the Bd occurrences were used, the predicted area subjected to Bd risk covered 17% of the study area. However, when just mortality records were used, the predicted area decreased three-fold. Notably, the three predicted areas only overlapped in 3% of the total study area, suggesting that the region at risk of mortality plus high infections constituted only one-fifth of the predicted area for Bd presence. Mean temperature during the wettest and warmest 3 months of the year together with isothermality emerged as the most robust negative predictors in each of the three models.
4. Synthesis and applications. Ecological niche models (ENMs) based on the presence data of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) can overestimate the mortality risk of chytridiomycosis because the environmental conditions suitable for Bd presence do not always correspond to those conducive to significant host mortality. Distribution modelling can be a powerful tool when used correctly, and this study highlights the significance of careful data selection to ensure alignment with intended objectives. Considering the widespread use of ENMs to inform policy, meticulous design and comprehensive evaluation are imperativeFunding information: Doctorados Industriales de la Comunidad de Madrid, Grant/Award Number: IND2020/AMB-17438; Organismo Autónomo Parques Nacionales of Spain, Grant/Award Number: 2399/201
The release of catecholamines to the cytosol and the exocytosis of secretory vesicles triggered by IP3 in chromaffin cells
No full textThe aim of the present study was to investigate the secretory responses elicited by inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) and their regulation by Ca2+ from different sources. Fura-2, carbon fiber amperometry, and plasma membrane capacitance recordings were performed in mouse chromaffin cells to evaluate cytosolic Ca2+ changes, catecholamine release, and exocytosis, respectively. Amperometric recordings revealed that IP3 triggered the continuous release of catecholamines to the cytosol with a plateau shape, either applied independently or in combination with the V-ATPase blocker bafilomycin A1, without exhibiting additive effects, which suggests that V-ATPase blockade might be a potential mechanism of action. The catecholamine release elicited by IP3 can take place in the absence of cytosolic Ca2+; however, it may be also regulated by it through a bell-shaped mechanism, with the contribution of Ca2+ stored in intracellular organelles. Furthermore, plasma membrane capacitance recordings showed that IP3 could also elicit exocytosis of secretory vesicles with the participation of intracellular organelle Ca2+ stores. This exocytosis could be regulated by vesicular or cytosolic Ca2+, as shown in experiments with bafilomycin A1 or the Ca2+ chelator BAPTA-AM, respectively, and by kaempferol, an activator of the mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter, suggesting that mitochondria may exert physiologically this Ca2+ regulatory mechanism. Therefore, in the IP3-mediated secretion, Ca2+ from different sources control the different steps of catecholamine release from the secretory vesicle to the cytosol and then finally to the extracellular spaceThis work was supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation to A.A. (grant numbers BFU2008-01382/BFI, BFU2011-27690, and BFU2015-69092
Dimensionality assessment in the presence of wording effects: A network psychometric and factorial approach
No full textAll data and materials used in this study are available at https://osf.io/f92hu/?view_only=304cc8a3c0434f95914badde7a4fbfeaThis study proposes a procedure for substantive dimensionality estimation in the presence of wording effects, the inconsistent response to regular and reversed self-report items. The procedure developed consists of subtracting an approximate estimate of the wording effects variance from the sample correlation matrix and then estimating the substantive dimensionality on the residual correlation matrix. This is achieved by estimating a random intercept factor with unit loadings for all the regular and unrecoded reversed items. The accuracy of the procedure was evaluated through an extensive simulation study that manipulated nine relevant variables and employed the exploratory graph analysis (EGA) and parallel analysis (PA) retention methods. The results indicated that combining the proposed procedure with EGA or PA achieved high accuracy in estimating the substantive latent dimensionality, but that EGA was superior. Additionally, the present findings shed light on the complex ways that wording effects impact the dimensionality estimates when the response bias in the data is ignored. A tutorial on substantive dimensionality estimation with the R package EGAnet is offered, as well as practical guidelines for applied researchersThis study has been supported by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and European Social Fund (PID2022-137258NB-I00) and the UAM-IIC Chair «Psychometric Models and Applications
Cross-scale interplay in DNA mechanical properties
No full textTesis Doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Física Teórica de la Materia Condensada. Fecha de Lectura: 12-09-2025La organización fı́sica de organismos biológicos a menudo comprende procesos que, pese a suceder en escalas espaciales y temporales muy distantes, se encuentran delicadamente entretejidos a través de una complicada red de sutiles interacciones y propiedades emergentes. El Ácido Desoxirribonucleico (ADN), la molécula de la vida (o más precisamente, el eje central de la biologı́a molecular), puede ser considerado como una familia de estructuras poliméricas, que abarcan muy diferentes escalas fı́sicas, que pueden encontrarse en un sinnúmero de organismos vivos asombrosamente variados, y que desempeñan en estos un amplio espectro de funciones biológicas.
De todo ello resulta una diversa gama de fenómenos que guardan relación con el ADN, y que desafı́an sistemáticamente la tentativa de caracterización teórica debido a varias razones. Por una parte, la caracterización fı́sica de
estos sistemas precisa de un buen repertorio de modelos y técnicas para inspeccionar propiedades asociadas a un nivel de descripción concreto, pero cuyo impacto repercute en escalas mucho mayores por medio de mecanismos que no se pueden deducir inmediatamente de esos modelos. Por otra parte, incluso restringiéndonos al estudio de una propiedad especı́fica y bien definida en una escala determinada, el ADN a menudo exhibe un comportamiento fı́sico muy sofisticado que desafı́a los modelos más comunes, requiriendo en ocasiones incorporar efectos extraordinariamente complejos que tienen relevancia en sistemas de interés en biologı́a.
La presente Tesis gira en torno a esta idea, en el contexto de las propiedades mecánicas del ADN: un conjunto de caracterı́sticas fı́sicas que describen cómo se deforma el ADN en una escala determinada y en un entorno concreto. La Tesis comienza con una revisión de las herramientas metodológicas y los modelos más utilizados en la literatura del campo para caracterizar la flexibilidad del ADN (Capı́tulo 1), y sigue con una selección de trabajos de investigación que desarrollan esos conceptos para describir comportamientos más complicados, y que han sido observados en experimentos (Capı́tulo 2). En ambos casos, se ha puesto especial cuidado en clasificar y organizar la exposición de los modelos en función de la escala más caracterı́stica del comportamiento que describen.
Los Capı́tulos 3, 4 y 5 contienen investigaciones originales de esta Tesis, de forma que cada uno aborda un tema pertinente que concierne a las propiedades mecánicas de un sistema relacionado con ADN en una escala fı́sica particular. Las nociones fundamentales detrás de estos trabajos — elasticidad no lineal, elasticidad dependiente de la secuencia y entrelazamiento mecánico — proporcionan tres ejemplos notables de comportamientos no triviales en la fı́sica del ADN (o de sistemas inspirados en ADN), con interesantes implicaciones tanto en términos de importancia biológica, como en posibles aplicaciones en nanotecnologı́
From investment to impact: the role of european FDI and corporate social responsibility in Africa’s sustainable growth
No full textAfrica continues to face persistent development challenges, making foreign direct investment (FDI) essential for growth and sustainability. This paper examines the role of the European Union (EU) as Africa’s leading investor, with particular emphasis on how European companies employ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to complement their FDI. The study is guided by three research questions. First, what is the overall role of FDI in African development, and to what extent does it infl uence per capita income and inequality? The underlying hypothesis is that European FDI strengthens productive capacity and supports structural transformation, thereby contributing to higher GDP per capita and reduced inequality. Second, how do CSR initiatives enhance sustainability at the micro level? Here, the hypothesis is that multinational enterprises seek to mitigate externalities, apply European ESG standards in weaker regulatory environments, and counter neo-colonial narratives. Third, do CSR strategies differ across sectors? It is hypothesised that fi rms adapt CSR to specifi c social and environmental externalities. Using data from UNCTAD, the World Bank, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the study fi nds that FDI correlates positively with GDP per capita but does not have a signifi cant effect on inequality, while environmental outcomes show clearer improvement. Case studies of European fi rms confi rm sector-specifi c CSR contributions while also highlighting reputational risks and controversie
General jet components of homogeneous plane curve singularities
No full textLet k be a field of characteristic zero. Let f ∈ k[x, y] be a reduced homogeneous polynomial. In this article, for every integer n ∈ N, we study the general component Gn(C ) of the jet scheme Ln(C ) of level n, associated with the affine plane curve C = Spec(k[x, y]/⟨ f ⟩). The reduced k-scheme Gn(C ) is defined as the Zariski closure of the (open) subset formed by the n-jets centered at the regular locus of C . Our work yields both theoretical results, mainly by constructing an isomorphism between the algebra Gn+1 := O(Gn+1(C )) and the Rees algebra obtained from Gn by blowing up the singular locus of any Gn-derivation on Gn+1, and constructive results, by proposing Gröbner bases associated with a presentation of Gn+1. As an application, we show how to connect a presentation of G1 to the equation of the dual curve of any projective plane curve with a specific condition at the line at infinityThe first author is partially supported by Grant PID2022-138916NB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by ERDF A way of making Europ