San Cristóbal’s research while affiliated with University of Cantabria and other places

Resumen Introducción: El examen de acceso a la especialización médica en España, conocido como prueba MIR, se convoca anualmente desde 1978 y se realiza simultáneamente en diversas sedes distribuidas por toda España. El acceso a las distintas especialidades médicas está condicionado por el baremo académico o puntaje conseguido en el grado de Medicina, entendiendo como tal el promedio de las calificaciones obtenidas durante la carrera en medicina, así como por el resultado de dicha prueba. Objetivo: El objetivo del presente trabajo fue el análisis los resultados de los médicos presentados a las pruebas MIR de 2019 y 2020, en función de su puntaje. Método: Para este estudio se hizo uso de la información publicada por el Ministerio de Sanidad relativa a los resultados definitivos de las convocatorias de la prueba MIR de 2019 y 2020. Dicha información incluye la nota media del baremo académico o puntaje de todos los médicos que realizaron el examen, así como el número de orden obtenido en la prueba. Resultados: Aunque la nota media del expediente de los opositores tiene un peso únicamente del 10% sobre la puntuación que da lugar a su ordenación en la prueba MIR, existe una correlación importante entre el puntaje y el número de orden obtenido que permite escoger entre las diferentes plazas de formación sanitaria especializada ofertadas en la convocatoria. Conclusiones: En la mayor parte de los casos, los individuos que obtuvieron una mejor nota media en el grado de Medicina son los que obtienen los mejores resultados en la prueba MIR. Esto se debe a un mayor nivel de conocimientos de partida al inicio de la preparación de la prueba, junto con un mejor aprovechamiento de dicho tiempo de preparación, ligado a su capacidad y hábito de trabajo, entrenados previamente a lo largo de los seis cursos del grado.

Background The COVID-19 pandemic's mental health consequences remain unknown. Aim to assess the mental health status of ambulatory cardiometabolic patients during COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in Spanish speaking Latin American countries. Methods Cardiometabolic patients without COVID-19 evidence in 13 Latin American countries answered a survey between June 15th and July 15th, 2020. The Diagnosis Manual of Mental Disorders fifth edition was used to identify the presence of major depressive symptoms. Results The sample included 4,216 patients, 1,590 (37•71%; IC95% 36•24-39•19) were considered suffering major depression. Female gender, consuming ≥ 5 medications day, physical activity < 100 minutes weekly, low fruits and vegetables intake, poor treatment adherence, reduced food consumption were independently associated to the presence of major depressive symptoms. Conclusions The CorCOVID Latam Psy study showed that one third of the Latin American Spanish speaking population is suffering from major depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Both abiotic and biotic factors affect the abundance and distribution of organisms and therefore impact ecosystems and agroecosystems. Indeed, some organisms have strong effects on the distribution of others because they act as keystone species and/or ecosystem engineers whose effects cascade to other trophic levels. Ants can affect the distribution and abundance of a variety of taxonomic groups. In coffee agroecosystems from Southern Mexico Azteca sericeasur ants actively patrol the tree where their nest is built and the nearby coffee plants influencing the ant community and biological control. Here we report the relationship that A.sericeasur has with spiders, an abundant predatory group found in coffee farms. We present evidence of the relationships between A. sericeasur and spider communities found at the coffee layer and at the tree trunk layer; and we suggest potential mechanisms driving the observed patterns. During the summers of 2008 and 2009 we sampled spiders in the coffee layer and we found that spiders per coffee bush were richer and more abundant in the presence of A. sericeasur that in its absence. Indeed, in the presence of these ants, spider richness increased by 27% whereas spider abundance increased by 67 %. Although, spider richness and abundance per coffee plant increased in the presence of A. sericeasur, spider species composition did not change between plants with and without the ants. In addition, we found that insect abundance per coffee plant increased in the presence of the ants. Based on this evidence we propose resource availability and enemy free space as driving mechanisms In regard to the spider community found at the trunk of shade trees in 2011 and 2012 we found that A. sericeasur was positively correlated with spider abundance and biomass. Indeed, spider abundance increased by 57.5% in the presence of the ants whereas spider biomass was also strongly correlated with their presence. However, we also identified that excluding the two most abundant spiders (Ischnothele digitata and Azilia guatemalensis), strongly changed the observed patterns. Fieldwork observations supported that both I. digitata and A. guatemalensis are predators of A. sericeasur. Likewise the coffee layer, spider species composition in the tree trunk layer was not strongly affected by the presence of the ant. Finally, we report the association between Falconina sp and A. sericeasur; a swift spider that travels in and out of A. sericeasur nests. Our data suggest that Falconina is a scavenger that takes advantage of dead A. sericeasur individuals. Overall we show that through resource availability, enemy free space and predation, A. sericeasur ants positively drive spider communities found at the coffee and at the tree trunk layers of coffee agroecosystems. (CONACYT, University of Michigan-Rackham School and School of Natural Resources and Environment, COCYTECH and NSF-DEB-1262086 granted to S. Philpott).

A typical construction project involves a wide range of disparate professionals, in many cases geographically distributed, working together for a relatively short period of time on the design and construction of a facility. Since organizations are becoming flatter, culturally rich, geographically diverse and intensely competitive, the possibilities for conflict in such environments are greater. Negotiation is an important aspect of a project and plays an important role in resolving claims, preventing disputes, and keeping a harmonious relationship between project participants. Part of any project manager's role as a leader is to recognize conflict, understand the sources of conflict and manage it, and to do this a project manager must be able to understand the basics of negotiation theory and have sufficient competencies to lead in such situations. To address the complex technical and human issues in negotiation, different negotiation theories and models are available which mainly include game theory, economic theory, and behavior theory. Since Game Theory provides, by its very nature, the appropriate tools for the analysis and eventual solution of conflicts of any kind, this paper uses a model based on Game Theory in order to identify the activities that are responsible for the delays in a project and divide the costs among them.

Selection for high prolificacy and lean growth rate in swine has been associated with a substantial increase in piglet mortality. The first 24‐48 hours after birth represent a critical period for survival. A major determinant for early survival is piglet maturity at birth which relies greatly on the process of tissue maturation during the last month of gestation. The objective of this study was to compare the progenies from Large White (LW) and Meishan (MS) breeds which differ for piglet survival and neonatal mortality. This project proposes multi‐disciplinary and multi‐omic approaches to identify the molecular and genetic basis related to maturity and perinatal survival. The metabolome was analyzed on plasma, urine, and amniotic liquid on 612 fetuses: it displayed higher heterogeneity at the end of gestation. The transcriptome of adrenal glands, muscle, liver, subcutaneous adipose tissue, and small intestine and the proteome of muscle and adipose subcutaneous tissue were analyzed on 64 fetuses. The first analyses identified the biological processes involved in development and maturity, and key genes that may explain the differences observed between LW and MS.