Water discharge variations control fluvial stratigraphic architecture in the Middle Eocene Escanilla formation, Spain.

Ancient fluvial deposits typically display repetitive changes in their depositional architecture such as alternating intervals of coarse-grained highly amalgamated (HA), laterally-stacked, channel bodies, and finer-grained less amalgamated (LA), vertically-stacked, channels encased in floodplain deposits. Such patterns are usually ascribed to slower, respectively higher, rates of base level rise (accommodation). However, "upstream" factors such as water discharge and sediment flux also play a potential role in determining stratigraphic architecture, yet this possibility has never been tested despite the recent advances in the field of palaeohydraulic reconstructions from fluvial accumulations. Here, we chronicle riverbed gradient evolution within three Middle Eocene (~ 40 Ma) fluvial HA-LA sequences in the Escanilla Formation in the south-Pyrenean foreland basin. This work documents, for the first time in a fossil fluvial system, how the ancient riverbed systematically evolved from lower slopes in coarser-grained HA intervals, and higher slopes in finer-grained LA intervals, suggesting that bed slope changes were determined primarily by climate-controlled water discharge variations rather than base level changes as often hypothesized. This highlights the important connection between climate and landscape evolution and has fundamental implications for our ability to reconstruct ancient hydroclimates from the interpretation of fluvial sedimentary sequences.

A revised (earliest Vallesian) age for the hominoid-bearing locality of Can Mata 1 based on new magnetostratigraphic and biostratigraphic data from Abocador de Can Mata (Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula).

The Abocador de Can Mata (ACM) composite stratigraphic sequence (els Hostalets de Pierola, Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula) has yielded a diverse primate assemblage from the late Aragonian (Middle to Late Miocene). Detailed litho-, bio-, and magnetostratigraphic control has enabled an accurate dating of these fossil remains. Comparable data, however, were lacking for the nearby locality of Can Mata 1 (CM1), which yielded a dryopithecine canine of a female individual. Given the lack of hipparionin equids and giraffids, CM1 has been correlated to the latest Aragonian (Mammal Neogene [MN] zone MN7+8). Here we revise the age of CM1 based on fieldwork and associated paleomagnetic samplings undertaken in 2018-2021. Our results extend the ACM composite sequence upward and indicate that CM1 correlates to the earliest Vallesian (MN9). The updated ACM sequence has a thickness of ∼300 m and comprises 12 magnetozones correlated to subchrons C5Ar.1r to C5n.2n (∼12.6-11.1 Ma; latest MN6 to earliest MN9, late Aragonian to earliest Vallesian). CM1 is correlated to C5r.1r (11.146-11.056 Ma), with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma, thus postdating the dispersal of hipparionin horses into the Vallès-Penedès Basin-which is correlated to the previous subchron C5r.1n, with an interpolated age of 11.18 Ma, and by definition marks the beginning of the Vallesian. CM1 also minimally postdates the earliest record of giraffids at ACM-representing their earliest well-dated occurrence in the basin-being correlated to C5r.1n with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma. We conclude that CM1 has an earliest Vallesian (MN9) age of ∼11.1 Ma, intermediate between the Aragonian dryopithecins and the Vallesian hispanopithecins. Ongoing paleontological surveillance at ACM thus offers the prospect to yield additional earliest Vallesian ape remains, which are essential to clarify their taxonomic allocation as well as to confirm whether hispanopithecins evolved locally from dryopithecins rather than immigrating from elsewhere during MN9.

Bio- and magnetostratigraphic correlation of the Miocene primate-bearing site of Castell de Barberà to the earliest Vallesian.

Castell de Barberà, located in the Vallès-Penedès Basin (NE Iberian Peninsula), is one of the few European sites where pliopithecoids (Barberapithecus) and hominoids (cf. Dryopithecus) co-occur. The dating of this Miocene site has proven controversial. A latest Aragonian (MN7+8, ca. 11.88-11.18 Ma) age was long accepted by most authors, despite subsequent reports of hipparionin remains that signaled a Vallesian age. On the latter basis, Castell de Barberà was recently correlated to the early Vallesian (MN9, ca. 11.18-10.3 Ma) on tentative grounds. Uncertainties about the provenance of the Hippotherium material and the lack of magnetostratigraphic data precluded more accurate dating. After decades of inactivity, fieldwork was resumed in 2014-2015 at Castell de Barberà, including the original layer (CB-D) that previously delivered most of the fossils. Here we report magnetostratigraphic results for the original outcrop and another nearby section. Our results indicate that CB-D is located in a normal polarity magnetozone in the middle of a short (∼20 m-thick) stratigraphic section. The composite magnetostratigraphic section (∼50 m) has as many as four to six magnetozones. These multiple reversals, coupled with the in situ recovery of a Hippotherium humerus from CB-D in 2015, make it unlikely that any of the sampled normal polarity magnetozones correlate with the long normal polarity subchron C5n.2n (11.056-9.984 Ma), which is characteristic of the early Vallesian. Our results support instead a correlation of CB-D with C5r.1n (11.188-11.146 Ma), where the Aragonian/Vallesian boundary is situated, and therefore indicate an earliest Vallesian age of ∼11.2 Ma for Castell de Barberà. Our results settle the longstanding debate about the Aragonian vs. Vallesian age of this site, which appears roughly coeval with the Creu de Conill 20 locality (11.18 Ma), where hipparionins are first recorded in the Vallès-Penedès Basin.

Ten years in the dump: An updated review of the Miocene primate-bearing localities from Abocador de Can Mata (NE Iberian Peninsula).

More than ten years of paleontological fieldwork during the enlargement of the Can Mata Landfill (Abocador de Can Mata [ACM]), in els Hostalets de Pierola (Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula) led to the recovery of >60,000 Miocene vertebrate remains. The huge sampling effort (due to continuous surveillance of heavy machinery digging activity, coupled with manual excavation and screen-washing of sediments) enabled generally rare faunal elements such as pliopithecoid and hominoid primates to be found. Thanks to detailed litho-, bio- and magnetostratigraphic controls, accurate dating is possible for all the recovered primate remains from 19 of the 235 localities defined along the 234 m-thick composite stratigraphic sequence of the ACM. Here we report updated estimated (interpolated) ages for these paleontological localities and review the timing of the primate succession in this area. Our results indicate that the whole ACM sequence is late Aragonian in age (MN6 and MN7+8) and includes seven magnetozones that are correlated to subchrons C5Ar.1r to C5r.2r (ca. 12.6 to 11.4 Ma). Great apes (dryopithecines) are first recorded at 12.4-12.3 Ma, but most of the finds (Anoiapithecus, Pierolapithecus and Dryopithecus) cluster between 12.0 and 11.9 Ma, followed by some indeterminate dryopithecine remains between 11.7 and 11.6 Ma. Pliopithecoids first appear at 12.1 Ma, being subsequently represented by Pliopithecus between 11.9 and 11.7 Ma. The small-bodied hominoid Pliobates is the youngest ACM primate, with an estimated age of 11.6 Ma. Although these primates probably overlapped in time, their co-occurrence is recorded only twice, at 11.9 Ma (a dryopithecine with Pliopithecus) and at 11.6 Ma (a dryopithecine with Pliobates). The rare co-occurrence between great apes and small-bodied catarrhines might be attributable to sampling biases and/or to presumed diverging ecological preferences of these groups. In the future, more detailed analyses of the fauna recovered from the long and densely-sampled ACM sequence will hopefully throw new light on this long-standing, unresolved question.

Biopsia de ganglio linfático, consideraciones básicas / Lymph node biopsy, basic considerations

Esta revisión pretende aportar los conocimientos básicos para realizar de forma correcta una biopsia de ganglio linfático. Las biopsias de ganglios linfáticos son un procedimiento común enla práctica quirúrgica, y en muchas ocasiones serealizan sin considerar las condiciones que pueden influir en el resultado diagnóstico.En adeno patías múltiples, se debe seleccionarel ganglio accesible más grande. Siempre debieranrealizarse contando con el equipo básicoque permita una buena iluminación del sitioquirúrgico, adecuada hemostasia y comodidad tanto para el paciente como para el cirujano. Las biopsias ganglionares, a pesar de no serconsideradas un procedimiento complicado, deben ser realizadas por cirujanos o residentes con experiencia. Finalmente se debe enfatizar que el trabajo conjunto entre el cirujano y el patólogo permite un mayor porcentaje de diagnósticoscorrectos y oportunos, minimizando lanecesidad de realizar nuevas biopsias.

Lymph node biopsy is a common surgical procedure. Several aspects of the technique and pathologic analysis will be discussed in this review. In cases of multiple nodes, the biggestlymph node should be selected for the biopsy. Adequate equipment, careful hemostasis, surgical experience and effective communication with the pathologist are key factors to achieve acorrect diagnosis.

Biphasic ß-TCP mixed with silicon increases bone formation in critical site defects in rabbit calvaria.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the bone regeneration of critical size defects in rabbit calvarias filled with ß-TCP doped with silicon. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-one New Zealand rabbits were used in this study. Two critical size defects were created in the parietal bones. Three experimental groups were evaluated: Test A (HA/ß-TCP granules alone), Test B (HA/ß-TCP granules plus 3% silicon), Control (empty defect). The animals were sacrificed at 8 and 12 weeks. Evaluation was performed by µCT analysis and histomorphometry. RESULTS: µCT evaluation showed higher volume reduction in Test A group compared with Test B (P < 0.05). The Test B group showed the highest values for cortical closure and bone formation around the particles, followed by Test A and controls (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Within the limitations of this animal study, it can be concluded that HA/ß-TCP plus 3% silicon increases bone formation in critical size defects in rabbit calvarias, and the incorporation of 3% silicon reduces the resorption rate of the HA/ß-TCP granules.

Conference report on tobacco taxes in Central America: current situation and opportunities to reduce prevalence and increase fiscal revenues.

INTRODUCTION: As stated in Article 6 of Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), increasing tobacco prices through higher taxes is one of the most effective interventions to reduce tobacco use and to encourage smokers to quit. The potential for tax increases on tobacco products in Central America is ample. We aim to synthesize the current tobacco taxes situation and highlight research needs to strengthen taxation. BACKGROUND: In May 2012, a workshop was carried out with representatives from each Central American country to analyze the tobacco tax situation in each country and to identify key research gaps with experts in the field. DISCUSSION: Tobacco taxes in Central America fall far short of the levels recommended by FCTC. Moreover, the legal framework is complex and creates barriers for higher taxes that require further research and political will. Top research priorities are an in-depth analysis of tobacco tax legislation, impact of tax and price policies, analysis of costs associated to health care of tobacco-related diseases and lost productivity, and the feasibility of approaches to increasing tobacco taxes in certain contexts. An additional area of research is the interrelationship between human rights and tobacco control. CONCLUSION: Central American countries would benefit from increasing excise taxes on tobacco products. The lack of available data and research to counteract tobacco industry arguments are significant obstacles. Active leadership of civil society in support of the partnership of chronic disease interventions is vital in order to obtain tax increases on tobacco products.

Prevalencia de cáncer en los órganos de los pacientes diagnosticados en el departamento de patología Dr. Carlos Martínez Durán del Hospital General San Juan de Dios, y tres laboratorios privados de patología. Ciudad de Guatemala, período 2,006 al 2,010 / Prevalence of cancer in organs of patients diagnosed in the Department of Pathology Dr. Carlos Martinez Duran of General San Juan de Dios Hospital, and three private pathology laboratories. Guatemala City, the period 2,006 2,010

Objetivo: Determinar la prevalencia de los organos afectados por cáncer diagnosticados en el Departamento de Patología Dr. Carlos Martínez Durán del Hospital General San Juan de Dios, Laboratorio de Patología Dr. Víctor Argueta, Laboratorio de Patología Dr. Roberto Orozco y Laboratorio de Patología y Citología Dr. Miguel Garcés y Dra. Helen Morales, ubicados en la ciudad de Guatemala, años 2,006-2,010. Metodología: La investigación está regida por un estudio cuantitativo, descriptivo, no experimental, retrospectivo, realizado en tres laboratorios privados de patología...

Updated chronology for the Miocene hominoid radiation in Western Eurasia.

Extant apes (Primates: Hominoidea) are the relics of a group that was much more diverse in the past. They originated in Africa around the Oligocene/Miocene boundary, but by the beginning of the Middle Miocene they expanded their range into Eurasia, where they experienced a far-reaching evolutionary radiation. A Eurasian origin of the great ape and human clade (Hominidae) has been favored by several authors, but the assessment of this hypothesis has been hampered by the lack of accurate datings for many Western Eurasian hominoids. Here we provide an updated chronology that incorporates recently discovered Iberian taxa and further reevaluates the age of many previously known sites on the basis of local biostratigraphic scales and magnetostratigraphic data. Our results show that identifiable Eurasian kenyapithecins (Griphopithecus and Kenyapithecus) are much younger than previously thought (ca. 14 Ma instead of 16 Ma), which casts serious doubts on the attribution of the hominoid tooth from Engelswies (16.3-16.5 Ma) to cf. Griphopithecus. This evidence is further consistent with an alternative scenario, according to which the Eurasian pongines and African hominines might have independently evolved in their respective continents from similar kenyapithecin ancestors, resulting from an early Middle Miocene intercontinental range extension followed by vicariance. This hypothesis, which would imply an independent origin of orthogrady in pongines and hominines, deserves further testing by accurately inferring the phylogenetic position of European dryopithecins, which might be stem pongines rather than stem hominines.

Myoepithelioma of the hand and carpal tunnel: An unusual cause of median nerve compression.

Myoepitheliomas are rare tumors increasingly recognized to occur in the soft tissues. Although the hand and carpal tunnel are exceptional locations, the presence of these lesions in such sites constitutes a potential cause of debilitating symptoms. We report the case of a patient with severe pain secondary to median nerve compression and displacement of flexor tendons caused by a rapidly growing myoepithelioma. This is the first sonographic description of this tumor producing carpal tunnel syndrome and disabling pain. High-resolution sonography allowed evaluation of gross tumor morphology and real-time assessment of its interactions with surrounding structures.

A mammalian lost world in southwest Europe during the late Pliocene.

BACKGROUND: Over the last decades, there has been an increasing interest on the chronology, distribution and mammal taxonomy (including hominins) related with the faunal turnovers that took place around the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition [ca. 1.8 mega-annum (Ma)] in Europe. However, these turnovers are not fully understood due to: the precarious nature of the period's fossil record; the "non-coexistence" in this record of many of the species involved; and the enormous geographical area encompassed. This palaeontological information gap can now be in part bridged with data from the Fonelas P-1 site (Granada, Spain), whose faunal composition and late Upper Pliocene date shed light on some of the problems concerning the timing and geography of the dispersals. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: This rich fossil site yielded 32 species of mammals, among which autochthonous species of the European Upper Villafranchian coexist with canids (Canis), ovibovines (Praeovibos) and giraffids (Mitilanotherium) from Asia. Typical African species, such as the brown hyena (Hyaena brunnea) and the bush pig (Potamochoerus) are also present. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This assemblage is taxonomically and palaeobiogeographically unique, and suggests that fewer dispersal events than was previously thought (possibly only one close to 2.0 Ma) are responsible for the changes seen around 1.9-1.7 Ma ago in the fauna of the two continents.

First partial face and upper dentition of the Middle Miocene hominoid Dryopithecus fontani from Abocador de Can Mata (Vallès-Penedès Basin, Catalonia, NE Spain): taxonomic and phylogenetic implications.

A well-preserved 11.8-million-years-old lower face attributed to the seminal taxon Dryopithecus fontani (Primates, Hominidae) from the Catalan site ACM/C3-Ae of the Hostalets de Pierola area (Vallès-Penedès Basin, Catalonia, NE Spain) is described. The new data indicate that D. fontani is distinct at the genus level from Late Miocene European taxa previously attributed to Dryopithecus, which are here reassigned to Hispanopithecus. The new facial specimen also suggests that D. fontani and the Middle Miocene Pierolapithecus catalaunicus are not synonymous. Anatomical and morphometric analyses further indicate that the new specimen shows a combination of lower facial features-hitherto unknown in Miocene hominoids-that resembles the facial pattern of Gorilla, thus providing the first nondental evidence of gorilla-like lower facial morphology in the fossil record. Considering the current evidence, the gorilla-like facial pattern of D. fontani is inferred to be derived relative to previously known stem hominids, and might indicate that this taxon is either an early member of the Homininae or, alternatively, a stem hominid convergent with the lower facial pattern of Gorilla. The biogeographic implications of both alternatives are discussed. This new finding in the Hostalets de Pierola section reinforces the importance of this area for understanding the elusive question of the Middle Miocene origin and early radiation of great apes.

Biochronological, taphonomical, and paleoenvironmental background of the fossil great ape Pierolapithecus catalaunicus (Primates, Hominidae).

The Late Aragonian (late middle Miocene) stratigraphic sequence of Abocador de Can Mata (ACM) from Els Hostalets de Pierola (Vallès-Penedès Basin, Catalonia, Spain), rich in fossil vertebrate localities, provides a unique opportunity to study the evolution of western Eurasian hominoids. Among these sites, Barranc de Can Vila 1 (BCV1) recently delivered a well-preserved hominoid partial skeleton of a new genus and species, Pierolapithecus catalaunicus. On the basis of the small-mammal fauna recovered at BCV1, we infer an early MN 7+8 age, between 12.5 and 12Ma, for this site. The spatial distribution of macromammal fossils, the relative abundances of skeletal elements, and their state of preservation suggest that different agents were involved in the accumulation of the P. catalaunicus individual and the remaining taxa. Carnivore marks occur on some bones of the P. catalunicus skeleton, documenting the action of predators and/or scavengers in this case. In contrast, carnivore marks are extremely rare on other macromammal remains, which seem to be derived from adjacent alluvial-fan plain areas. The small-mammal fauna from BCV1 and the large-mammal fauna from the ACM series, indicate the presence of considerably humid and warm forest environments. The compositions of the small-mammal fauna from BCV1 and from other Late Aragonian sites from the Vallès-Penedès area are similar to those from France and central Europe. The former are clearly distinct from those of Iberian inner basins, where the environment appears to have been drier, thus precluding the dispersal of hominoids into that area.

Fibrodisplasia ósea en los maxilares / Maxillary fibrodisplasia

La fibrodisplasia es una lesión que ataca a uno o varios huesos, que consiste básicamente en el reemplazo del tejido óseo normal por tejido fibroso con cantidad variable de tejido calcificado. Su etiología es desconocida y generalmente afecta a individuos jóvenes, siendo asintomático en sus comienzos. El diagnóstico se efectúa con adecuada información de la clínica, estudio radiológico e histológico. Su tratamiento es conservador y el pronóstico habitualmente es bueno