4-aminopyridine improves evoked potentials and ambulation in the taiep rat: A model of hypomyelination with atrophy of basal ganglia and cerebellum.

The taiep rat is a tubulin mutant with an early hypomyelination followed by progressive demyelination of the central nervous system due to a point mutation in the Tubb4a gene. It shows clinical, radiological, and pathological signs like those of the human leukodystrophy hypomyelination with atrophy of the basal ganglia and cerebellum (H-ABC). Taiep rats had tremor, ataxia, immobility episodes, epilepsy, and paralysis; the acronym of these signs given the name to this autosomal recessive trait. The aim of this study was to analyze the characteristics of somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEPs) and motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in adult taiep rats and in a patient suffering from H-ABC. Additionally, we evaluated the effects of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) on sensory responses and locomotion and finally, we compared myelin loss in the spinal cord of adult taiep and wild type (WT) rats using immunostaining. Our results showed delayed SSEPs in the upper and the absence of them in the lower extremities in a human patient. In taiep rats SSEPs had a delayed second negative evoked responses and were more susceptible to delayed responses with iterative stimulation with respect to WT. MEPs were produced by bipolar stimulation of the primary motor cortex generating a direct wave in WT rats followed by several indirect waves, but taiep rats had fused MEPs. Importantly, taiep SSEPs improved after systemic administration of 4-AP, a potassium channel blocker, and this drug induced an increase in the horizontal displacement measured in a novelty-induced locomotor test. In taiep subjects have a significant decrease in the immunostaining of myelin in the anterior and ventral funiculi of the lumbar spinal cord with respect to WT rats. In conclusion, evoked potentials are useful to evaluate myelin alterations in a leukodystrophy, which improved after systemic administration of 4-AP. Our results have a translational value because our findings have implications in future medical trials for H-ABC patients or with other leukodystrophies.

Global urban environmental change drives adaptation in white clover.

Urbanization transforms environments in ways that alter biological evolution. We examined whether urban environmental change drives parallel evolution by sampling 110,019 white clover plants from 6169 populations in 160 cities globally. Plants were assayed for a Mendelian antiherbivore defense that also affects tolerance to abiotic stressors. Urban-rural gradients were associated with the evolution of clines in defense in 47% of cities throughout the world. Variation in the strength of clines was explained by environmental changes in drought stress and vegetation cover that varied among cities. Sequencing 2074 genomes from 26 cities revealed that the evolution of urban-rural clines was best explained by adaptive evolution, but the degree of parallel adaptation varied among cities. Our results demonstrate that urbanization leads to adaptation at a global scale.

Impact of COVID-19 prevention measures on health service quality, perceived value and user satisfaction. A structural equation modelling (SEM) approach / Impacto de las medidas COVID-19 en la calidad del servicio sanitario, el valor percibido y la satisfacción del usuario. Un enfoque basado en modelos de ecuaciones estructurales (SEM)

Objective: To explain using a structural equation model to patient satisfaction by analysing confidence in preventive measures against COVID-19 as an antecedent of this satisfaction and the effect that these measures have on the antecedents of service quality and perceived value.DesignAn observational cross-sectional study.SiteOnline survey was sent via social networks for recruiting citizens resident in Spain.ParticipantsThe final sample consisted of 149 women and 122 men. The mean age of the participants was 36.73 years, all of whom were health service users.InterventionsNo interventions were conducted in the study.Main measurementsThe study variables for the development of the structural equation model were: confidence in COVID-19 safety protocol, perceived value, quality and user satisfaction.ResultsThe results showed a direct and positive effect of confidence in COVID-19 safety protocol on the quality of services provided, perceived value and user satisfaction.ConclusionsThe study is expected to be of interest to those in charge of designing protective measures against the spread of diseases, health centre managers and marketing professionals interested in the improvement user satisfaction, affected as a result of the current pandemic.

Objetivo: Explicar mediante un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales la satisfacción de los pacientes, analizando la confianza en las medidas preventivas contra la COVID-19 como antecedente de esta satisfacción y el efecto que estas medidas puedan tener en la calidad del servicio y en el valor percibido.DiseñoEstudio observacional transversal.EmplazamientoLa encuesta online se envió a través de las redes sociales para reclutar a ciudadanos residentes en España.ParticipantesLa muestra final estuvo compuesta por 149 mujeres y 122 hombres. La edad media de los participantes fue de 36,73 años, todos usuarios de servicios sanitarios.IntervencionesNo se realizaron intervenciones en el estudio.Medidas principalesLas variables del estudio para el desarrollo del modelo de ecuaciones estructurales fueron: la confianza en el protocolo de seguridad COVID-19, el valor percibido, la calidad y la satisfacción del usuario.ResultadosLos resultados muestran un efecto directo y positivo de la confianza en el protocolo de seguridad COVID-19, el valor percibido y la satisfacción de los usuarios.ConclusionesSe espera que el estudio sea de interés para el personal encargado de formular medidas de protección frente a la propagación de enfermedades, responsables de centros sanitarios y profesionales del marketing interesados en mejorar la satisfacción del usuario en el ámbito sanitario, mermada a consecuencia de la actual pandemia que vivimos.

Impact of COVID-19 prevention measures on health service quality, perceived value and user satisfaction. A structural equation modelling (SEM) approach.

OBJECTIVE: To explain using a structural equation model to patient satisfaction by analysing confidence in preventive measures against COVID-19 as an antecedent of this satisfaction and the effect that these measures have on the antecedents of service quality and perceived value. DESIGN: An observational cross-sectional study. SITE: Online survey was sent via social networks for recruiting citizens resident in Spain. PARTICIPANTS: The final sample consisted of 149 women and 122 men. The mean age of the participants was 36.73 years, all of whom were health service users. INTERVENTIONS: No interventions were conducted in the study. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: The study variables for the development of the structural equation model were: confidence in COVID-19 safety protocol, perceived value, quality and user satisfaction. RESULTS: The results showed a direct and positive effect of confidence in COVID-19 safety protocol on the quality of services provided, perceived value and user satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: The study is expected to be of interest to those in charge of designing protective measures against the spread of diseases, health centre managers and marketing professionals interested in the improvement user satisfaction, affected as a result of the current pandemic.

Development and Validation of the Psychotherapeutic Effectiveness Attribution Questionnaire (PEAQ-12) in a Spanish Population.

In recent decades, the study of psychotherapy effectiveness has been one of the pillars of clinical research because of its implication for therapeutic cure. However, although many studies have focused their interest on the patient's perception, there are no instruments oriented to the study of psychotherapists' attributions of effectiveness: to what factors psychotherapists attribute responsibility for the cure of the therapies they provide. The present study aimed to develop and validate an instrument for assessing the attribution of the effectiveness of psychotherapy in a population of 69 psychotherapists of different theoretical orientations. After an initial process of inter-judge content validation, 12 items were selected for validation in the targeted population, adequately fulfilling the quality requirements in the validity-reliability tests, and grouped into four factors after principal component analysis. These factors were as follows: (1) therapeutic alliance enhancers; (2) psychotherapist emotional characteristics; (3) therapy-specific variables; and (4) facilitators of patient engagement with therapy. This four-factor structure also showed a good fit for the fit indices checked in confirmatory factor analysis. In summary, we can conclude that the Psychotherapeutic Effectiveness Attribution Questionnaire (PEAQ-12) developed in our research can be helpful if tested on a larger number of individuals. The results can be replicated in other populations of psychotherapists.

What Do You Want to Eat? Influence of Menu Description and Design on Consumer's Mind: An fMRI Study.

The main objective of this research was to analyse the active regions when processing dishes with a pleasant (vs. unpleasant) design and the effect of the previously read rational (vs. emotional) description when visualising the dish. The functional magnetic resonance image technique was used for the study. The results showed that participants who visualised pleasant vs. unpleasant dishes became active in several domains (e.g., attention, cognition and reward). On the other side, visualisation of unpleasant dishes activated stronger regions linked to inhibition, rejection, and related ambiguity. We found that subjects who read rational descriptions when visualising pleasant dishes activated regions related to congruence integration, while subjects who visualised emotional descriptions showed an increased neuronal response to pleasant dishes in the regions related to memory, emotion and congruence.

Visual motor imagery predominance in professional Spanish dancers.

Purpose: The main objectives of the study were to analyse the predominant motor imagery modality used by professional Spanish dancers and to compare Spanish dancers' ability to perform mental motor imagery with that of non-dancers, and to analyse differences between male and female dancers. As a secondary aim, to compare the motor imagery ability between two styles of Spanish dance: classical Spanish dancers and Flamenco dancers. Methods: A total of 74 participants were classified into two groups: professional Spanish dancers (n = 37) and sedentary participants (n = 37). The professional Spanish dancer group was composed of two dance disciplines: flamenco dancers (n = 17), and classical dancers (n = 20). Results: Professional Spanish dancers used predominantly visual imagery modalities over kinesthetics to generate motor imagery, with a moderate effect size (p < .01, d = 0.68). Regarding the ability to generate motor imagery, significant intergroup differences between professional Spanish dancers and sedentary participants were observed in all variables, with a large effect size (p < .05, d > 0.80). Differences were obtained between men and women among non-dancers group (t = -3.34; p = .03; d = 0.5). No differences between Flamenco and classical dancers were observed. Conclusion: Visual motor imagery modality was easier than the kinaesthetic modality in the generation of motor imagery for professional Spanish dancers regardless of the dance style. Spanish dancers had a greater ability to perform motor imagery compared with non-dancer individuals, needing less time to perform these mental tasks. Men non-dancers had a greater ability to generate motor imagery than women. Reinforcing the training of kinaesthetic motor imagery might be useful for professional Spanish dancers.

Measuring advertising effectiveness in Travel 2.0 websites through eye-tracking technology.

The advent of Web 2.0 is changing tourists' behaviors, prompting them to take on a more active role in preparing their travel plans. It is also leading tourism companies to have to adapt their marketing strategies to different online social media. The present study analyzes advertising effectiveness in social media in terms of customers' visual attention and self-reported memory (recall). Data were collected through a within-subjects and between-groups design based on eye-tracking technology, followed by a self-administered questionnaire. Participants were instructed to visit three Travel 2.0 websites (T2W), including a hotel's blog, social network profile (Facebook), and virtual community profile (Tripadvisor). Overall, the results revealed greater advertising effectiveness in the case of the hotel social network; and visual attention measures based on eye-tracking data differed from measures of self-reported recall. Visual attention to the ad banner was paid at a low level of awareness, which explains why the associations with the ad did not activate its subsequent recall. The paper offers a pioneering attempt in the application of eye-tracking technology, and examines the possible impact of visual marketing stimuli on user T2W-related behavior. The practical implications identified in this research, along with its limitations and future research opportunities, are of interest both for further theoretical development and practical application.

Sparking interest in restaurant dishes? Cognitive and affective processes underlying dish design and ecological origin. An fMRI study.

This papers aims to verify to what extent the presentation of a restaurant dish and the origin of its food provoke reactions in the consumer's brain during the visualization and the decision-making process, from an exploratory approach. The two independent variables singled out for study were whether the presentation was well or poorly presented and if the ingredients were ecological or non-ecological. The results applying the functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) methodology reveal that well-presented dishes activate areas in the brain linked to the network of emotions indicating that the visualization in restaurant menus is not a purely cognitive and self-reflexive process but retains a strong affective component. Furthermore, the presence of this component is kept at the moment of choosing a dish, as observed by the activation of the cingulate gyrus, region linked to the regulatory processes of emotions. Hence, research ratifies the existence of an emotional factor during the entire process of decision-making carried out in a restaurant. Yet it is true that exposure to an ecological menu provokes activation of the medial frontal cortex, a region connected to higher reasoning and attention, suggesting that stimuli from well-presented dishes of ecological origin trigger neuronal responses related to high-level cognitive processes. The practical implications derived, along with its limitations and the future research opportunities, are interesting for both developing theory and also practice. Therefore, scholars are encouraged to further test some research proposals (e.g. moderating role of salubrity or simultaneously eye tracking method).

Características demográficas de las madres e hijos sometidos a técnicas de reproducción asistida en el Hospital Español de México en 2016 / Demographic characteristics of mothers and children undergoing assisted reproduction techniques at Hospital Español de México in 2016

Resumen Introducción La infertilidad es una enfermedad caracterizada por la incapacidad de lograr un embarazo después de 12 meses o más de relaciones sexuales no protegidas. En México, la reproducción asistida se encuentra a la par de cualquier país, siendo la tercera nación de Latinoamérica con mayor número de centros de reproducción. Objetivo Determinar las características demográficas de las madres e hijos sometidos a técnicas de reproducción asistida (TRA) en el Hospital Español de México en 2016. Material y métodos Se trata de un estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo que incluyó a los recién nacidos producto de TRA del Hospital Español de México en 2016. Se obtuvo información sobre el método de interrupción del embarazo, el número de productos, las semanas de gestación al nacimiento, peso y talla al nacimiento y si requirieron ingreso a la UCIN, así como las complicaciones presentadas. Resultados Se incluyeron 292 pacientes sometidas a TRA. De las complicaciones maternas asociadas, las más prevalentes fueron las infecciones durante el embarazo. Se obtuvieron datos de 373 recién nacidos. Se describen las complicaciones en estos pacientes; las más frecuentes fueron las respiratorias. Conclusiones Las TRA son tratamientos cada vez más utilizados. Hay que ser cuidadosos a la hora de informar a los futuros padres acerca de las complicaciones asociadas, teniendo en cuenta la variabilidad de datos disponibles.

Abstract Introduction Infertility is a disease characterized by the inability to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of unprotected sex. In Mexico, assisted reproduction is on par with any country, being the third nation in Latin America with the largest number of reproduction centers. Objective To determine the demographic characteristics of mothers and children undergoing assisted reproduction techniques (ART) at the Hospital Español de México in 2016. Material and methods This is a descriptive, retrospective study that included newborns product of ART performed in the Hospital Español de México in 2016. Information was obtained on the method of delivery, number of products, weeks of gestation at birth, birth weight and height, and if they required admission to the NICU, as well as the complications presented. Results 292 patients undergoing ART were included. Of the associated maternal complications, the most prevalent were infections during pregnancy. Data were obtained from 373 newborns. The complications in these patients are described, the most frequent being respiratory. Conclusions ART are increasingly used treatments. Care must be taken when informing prospective parents about associated complications, taking into account the variability of the available data.

Postural Stability in Osteoarthritis of the Knee and Hip: Analysis of Association With Pain Catastrophizing and Fear-Avoidance Beliefs.

BACKGROUND: Persons with knee osteoarthritis (OA) are at risk of having sensations of instability and sometimes experience buckling. The instability has been associated with psychosocial dysfunction, such as fear of movement, and impaired physical functioning. A high degree of fear of movement is positively correlated with avoidance in other conditions. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between postural stability, the degree of pain catastrophizing, and fear-avoidance beliefs in subjects with knee and hip OA. DESIGN: Descriptive, cross-sectional study. SETTING: Four primary health care centers. SUBJECTS: Eighty subjects with knee or combined knee and hip OA. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Postural stability was evaluated using the Multi-Directional Functional Reach Test (MDFRT), and a battery of self-reports was used to assess the following aspects: pain catastrophizing (Pain Catastrophizing Scale), fear-avoidance beliefs (Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia [TSK-11] and the Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire), pain (visual analog scale), disability (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index [WOMAC]), and self-efficacy (Chronic Pain Self-Efficacy Scale [CPSS]). RESULTS: The correlation analysis showed that scores on the MDFRT were negatively associated with scores on the TSK-11 for activity avoidance (r = -0.54; P < .001) and positively associated with the scores on the CPSS for coping (r = 0.59; P < .001). The scores for the MDFRT to the right and the total WOMAC were negatively associated (r = -0.61, P <.001). The scores for the MDFRT to the left were positively associated with the CPSS scores for coping (r = 0.64, P < .001). The scores for the MDFRT forward were predicted by CPSS and TSK-11 scores (28.9% of variance), as well as activity avoidance, avoidance of physical activity, helplessness (34.7% of variance), and CPSS pain coping (34.3% of variance). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that pain catastrophizing and fear-avoidance beliefs are related with postural stability in subjects with knee and hip OA. Postural stability is negatively correlated with pain catastrophizing and TSK activity avoidance. Thus, based on these results, psychosocial factors should be taken into consideration in the assessment and treatment of patients with hip and knee OA.

Fifty years of co-evolution and beyond: integrating co-evolution from molecules to species.

Fifty years after Ehrlich and Raven's seminal paper, the idea of co-evolution continues to grow as a key concept in our understanding of organic evolution. This concept has not only provided a compelling synthesis between evolutionary biology and community ecology, but has also inspired research that extends beyond its original scope. In this article, we identify unresolved questions about the co-evolutionary process and advocate for the integration of co-evolutionary research from molecular to interspecific interactions. We address two basic questions: (i) What is co-evolution and how common is it? (ii) What is the unit of co-evolution? Both questions aim to explore the heart of the co-evolutionary process. Despite the claim that co-evolution is ubiquitous, we argue that there is in fact little evidence to support the view that reciprocal natural selection and coadaptation are common in nature. We also challenge the traditional view that co-evolution only occurs between traits of interacting species. Co-evolution has the potential to explain evolutionary processes and patterns that result from intra- and intermolecular biochemical interactions within cells, intergenomic interactions (e.g. nuclear-cytoplasmic) within species, as well as intergenomic interactions mediated by phenotypic traits between species. Research that bridges across these levels of organization will help to advance our understanding of the importance of the co-evolutionary processes in shaping the diversity of life on Earth.

Selection mosaic exerted by specialist and generalist herbivores on chemical and physical defense of Datura stramonium.

Selection exerted by herbivores is a major force driving the evolution of plant defensive characters such as leaf trichomes or secondary metabolites. However, plant defense expression is highly variable among populations and identifying the sources of this variation remains a major challenge. Plant populations are often distributed across broad geographic ranges and are exposed to different herbivore communities, ranging from generalists (that feed on diverse plant species) to specialists (that feed on a restricted group of plants). We studied eight populations of the plant Datura stramonium usually eaten by specialist or generalist herbivores, in order to examine whether the pattern of phenotypic selection on secondary compounds (atropine and scopolamine) and a physical defense (trichome density) can explain geographic variation in these traits. Following co-evolutionary theory, we evaluated whether a more derived alkaloid (scopolamine) confers higher fitness benefits than its precursor (atropine), and whether this effect differs between specialist and generalist herbivores. Our results showed consistent directional selection in almost all populations and herbivores to reduce the concentration of atropine. The most derived alkaloid (scopolamine) was favored in only one of the populations, which is dominated by a generalist herbivore. In general, the patterns of selection support the existence of a selection mosaic and accounts for the positive correlation observed between atropine concentration and plant damage by herbivores recorded in previous studies.

[Therapeutic exercise as treatment for migraine and tension-type headaches: a systematic review of randomised clinical trials]. / Ejercicio terapéutico como tratamiento de las migrañas y cefaleas tensionales: revisión sistemática de ensayos clínicos aleatorizados.

AIM. To analyse the effectiveness of therapeutic exercise on migraines and tension-type headaches (TTH). MATERIALS AND METHODS. Electronic databases were used to search the literature for relevant articles. Eligibility criteria were: controlled randomised clinical trials (RCT), conducted on patients with migraine or TTH, in which the therapeutic intervention was based on therapeutic exercise, and the papers had been published in English and Spanish. Two independent reviewers performed the analysis of the methodological quality using the Delphi scale. RESULTS. Ten RCT were selected, seven of which offered good methodological quality. According to all the studies analysed, the intensity and frequency of pain diminished in comparison to the situation prior to establishing therapeutic exercise, and in five studies the effect was higher than in the control group. The qualitative analysis showed strong evidence of the absence of adverse events following the application of therapeutic exercise. Furthermore, strong evidence was also found of the effect of physiotherapeutic treatment, including therapeutic exercise, in lowering the intensity, frequency and duration of pain in patients with TTH. Limited evidence was also found of the effectiveness of aerobic exercise in patients with migraine, although it was not better than the effects derived from other forms of treatment. CONCLUSIONS. Results show that therapeutic exercise is a safe treatment that provides beneficial effects on migraines or TTH. Further RCT are required in the future with appropriate methodological designs to confirm these results.

TITLE: Ejercicio terapeutico como tratamiento de las migrañas y cefaleas tensionales: revision sistematica de ensayos clinicos aleatorizados.Objetivo. Analizar la efectividad que tiene el ejercicio terapeutico sobre las migrañas y las cefaleas de tipo tensional (CTT). Materiales y metodos. La busqueda de articulos se realizo utilizando bases de datos electronicas. Los criterios de inclusion fueron: estudios clinicos aleatorizados (ECA) controlados, realizados en pacientes con migrañas o CTT, donde la intervencion terapeutica se basara en ejercicio terapeutico y publicados en ingles y español. Dos revisores independientes realizaron el analisis de la calidad metodologica utilizando la escala Delphi. Resultados. Se seleccionaron 10 ECA, de los cuales siete presentaron una calidad metodologica buena. Segun todos los estudios analizados, el ejercicio terapeutico disminuyo la intensidad y frecuencia del dolor comparado con la situacion previa, y en cinco estudios el efecto fue mayor que en la comparativa con el grupo control. El analisis cualitativo muestra evidencia fuerte acerca de la ausencia de eventos adversos tras la aplicacion de ejercicio terapeutico. Ademas, se encontro evidencia fuerte acerca del efecto del tratamiento de fisioterapia, incluyendo el ejercicio terapeutico, para disminuir la intensidad, la frecuencia y la duracion del dolor en pacientes con CTT. Se observo evidencia limitada acerca de la efectividad del ejercicio aerobico sobre los pacientes con migraña sin ser superior el efecto al de otros tratamientos. Conclusiones. Los resultados muestran que el ejercicio terapeutico es un tratamiento seguro, que presenta efectos beneficiosos sobre las migrañas o las CTT. Es necesario que futuros ECA con diseños metodologicos adecuados confirmen estos resultados.

Ejercicio terapéutico como tratamiento de las migrañas y cefaleas tensionales: revisión sistemática de ensayos clínicos aleatorizados / Therapeutic exercise as treatment for migraine and tension-type headaches: a systematic review of randomised clinical trials

Objetivo. Analizar la efectividad que tiene el ejercicio terapéutico sobre las migrañas y las cefaleas de tipo tensional (CTT). Materiales y métodos. La búsqueda de artículos se realizó utilizando bases de datos electrónicas. Los criterios de inclusión fueron: estudios clínicos aleatorizados (ECA) controlados, realizados en pacientes con migrañas o CTT, donde la intervención terapéutica se basara en ejercicio terapéutico y publicados en inglés y español. Dos revisores independientes realizaron el análisis de la calidad metodológica utilizando la escala Delphi. Resultados. Se seleccionaron 10 ECA, de los cuales siete presentaron una calidad metodológica buena. Según todos los estudios analizados, el ejercicio terapéutico disminuyó la intensidad y frecuencia del dolor comparado con la situación previa, y en cinco estudios el efecto fue mayor que en la comparativa con el grupo control. El análisis cualitativo muestra evidencia fuerte acerca de la ausencia de eventos adversos tras la aplicación de ejercicio terapéutico. Además, se encontró evidencia fuerte acerca del efecto del tratamiento de fisioterapia, incluyendo el ejercicio terapéutico, para disminuir la intensidad, la frecuencia y la duración del dolor en pacientes con CTT. Se observó evidencia limitada acerca de la efectividad del ejercicio aeróbico sobre los pacientes con migraña sin ser superior el efecto al de otros tratamientos. Conclusiones. Los resultados muestran que el ejercicio terapéutico es un tratamiento seguro, que presenta efectos beneficiosos sobre las migrañas o las CTT. Es necesario que futuros ECA con diseños metodológicos adecuados confirmen estos resultados (AU)

Aim. To analyse the effectiveness of therapeutic exercise on migraines and tension-type headaches (TTH). Materials and methods. Electronic databases were used to search the literature for relevant articles. Eligibility criteria were: controlled randomised clinical trials (RCT), conducted on patients with migraine or TTH, in which the therapeutic intervention was based on therapeutic exercise, and the papers had been published in English and Spanish. Two independent reviewers performed the analysis of the methodological quality using the Delphi scale. Results. Ten RCT were selected, seven of which offered good methodological quality. According to all the studies analysed, the intensity and frequency of pain diminished in comparison to the situation prior to establishing therapeutic exercise, and in five studies the effect was higher than in the control group. The qualitative analysis showed strong evidence of the absence of adverse events following the application of therapeutic exercise. Furthermore, strong evidence was also found of the effect of physiotherapeutic treatment, including therapeutic exercise, in lowering the intensity, frequency and duration of pain in patients with TTH. Limited evidence was also found of the effectiveness of aerobic exercise in patients with migraine, although it was not better than the effects derived from other forms of treatment. Conclusions. Results show that therapeutic exercise is a safe treatment that provides beneficial effects on migraines or TTH. Further RCT are required in the future with appropriate methodological designs to confirm these results (AU)

Hyperstability and substrate promiscuity in laboratory resurrections of Precambrian ß-lactamases.

We report a sequence reconstruction analysis targeting several Precambrian nodes in the evolution of class-A ß-lactamases and the preparation and experimental characterization of their encoded proteins. Despite extensive sequence differences with the modern enzymes (~100 amino acid differences), the proteins resurrected in the laboratory properly fold into the canonical lactamase structure. The encoded proteins from 2-3 billion years (Gyr)-old ß-lactamase sequences undergo cooperative two-state thermal denaturation and display very large denaturation temperature enhancements (~35 °C) relative to modern ß-lactamases. They degrade different antibiotics in vitro with catalytic efficiencies comparable to that of an average modern enzyme. This enhanced substrate promiscuity is not accompanied by significant changes in the active-site region as seen in static X-ray structures, suggesting a plausible role for dynamics in the evolution of function in these proteins. Laboratory resurrections of 2-3 Gyr-old ß-lactamases also endowed modern microorganisms with significant levels of resistance toward a variety of antibiotics, opening up the possibility of performing laboratory replays of the molecular tape of lactamase evolution. Overall, these results support the notions that Precambrian life was thermophilic and that proteins can evolve from substrate-promiscuous generalists into specialists during the course of natural evolution. They also highlight the biotechnological potential of laboratory resurrection of Precambrian proteins, as both high stability and enhanced promiscuity (likely contributors to high evolvability) are advantageous features in protein scaffolds for molecular design and laboratory evolution.

Herbivores can select for mixed defensive strategies in plants.

Resistance and tolerance are the most important defense mechanisms against herbivores. Initial theoretical studies considered both mechanisms functionally redundant, but more recent empirical studies suggest that these mechanisms may complement each other, favoring the presence of mixed defense patterns. However, the expectation of redundancy between tolerance and resistance remains unsupported. In this study, we tested this assumption following an ecological genetics field experiment in which the presence/absence of two herbivores (Lema daturaphila and Epitrix parvula) of Datura stramonium were manipulated. In each of three treatments, genotypic selection analyses were performed and selection patterns compared. Our results indicated that selection on resistance and tolerance was significantly different between the two folivores. Tolerance and resistance are not redundant defense strategies in D. stramonium but instead functioned as complementary defenses against both beetle species, favoring the evolution of a mixed defense strategy. Although each herbivore was selected for different defense strategies, the observed average tolerance and resistance were closer to the adaptive peak predicted against E. parvula and both beetles together. In our experimental population, natural selection imposed by herbivores can favor the evolution of mixed defense strategies in plants, accounting for the presence of intermediate levels of tolerance and resistance.