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Goji fruits grown in the organic and conventional systems were investigated for phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity (AA), carotenoid and ascorbic acid profile, fatty acid composition (FA), and thermal stability. Phenolic extracts and solid samples were analyzed, comparing the use of shaker and ultrasound for Folin-Ciocalteu, Fast Blue BB, and FRAP methods. HPLC and GC-FID were used to determine the profile of carotenoids, ascorbic acid and FA, and oil thermal stability was determined by TG-DTG. Ultrasound showed a higher content of TPC and AA in organic (803.34–7076.43 mg GAE/100 g, 11.45–234.11 mmol TE/100 g) and conventional (763.01–6366.30 mg GAE/100 g, 10.27–117.12 mmol TE/100 g) samples in relation to the shaker. The Folin-Ciocalteu showed higher values (912.42–6350.54 mg/100 g) than the Fast-Blue BB method. The content of TPC and AA were 3–20 times higher in solid samples (Quencher) compared to extracts. (all-E)-lutein and (all-E)-zeaxanthin were the main carotenoids identified. Organic and conventional fruits showed a high vitamin C content (101.83 and 80.46 mg/100 g). Linoleic acid was the main FA, and the ω-6/ω-3 ratio was 0.13 and 0.12. Thermal decomposition for organic and conventional oils started at 130 and 170 °C, respectively. Organic fruits had a higher TPC, AA, (all-E)-zeaxanthin, vitamin C, and linoleic acid than conventional fruits. The results presented in this work show the potential of goji fruits, mainly cultivated in the organic system, as antioxidants and natural functional ingredients. Therefore, goji berry can be considered a food and a promising functional ingredient for developing products in different industrial segments with cosmetic, food, and pharmaceutical purposes.

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (SAH) is caused by an aneurysmatic origin in 80% of cases. In the adult population, the risk of shunt dysfunction is about 16% in the first year, with proximal mechanical obstruction being the most frequent cause.

Aims: The latest reports on the taxonomy of the genus Sarcocornia A. J. Scott (Chenopodiaceae) in the western Mediterranean clarify the existence of several recognised species: Sarcocornia perennis and S. pruinosa from Atlantic littoral salt marshes; S. alpini from Atlantic and Mediterranean estuarine coastal salt marshes; S. lagascae found in Mediterranean coastal areas on the Iberian Peninsula and Balearic Islands; S. hispanica from Mediterranean semi-arid inland and coastal salt pans; and S. carinata, endemic in continental inland salt pans on the Iberian Peninsula. Sarcocornia fruticosa has been found to be absent from Iberian territories. We provide a survey of Sarcocornia plant communities traditionally framed in the order Salicornietalia fruticosae. In view of the new Sarcocornia taxonomy we review the current syntaxonomy of the Sarcocornia plant communities. Study area: Littoral, coastal and inland saline zones on the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. Methods: We compiled and processed 700 phytosociological relevés (after screening, 515) selected from our unpublished field notes and from many bibliographical sources of vegetation studies. We performed a multivariate statistical analysis (K-means and correspondence analysis). Results: We describe the Sarcocornia communities, provide a regional syntaxonomical overview in the Salicornietea fruticosae and make nomenclatural proposals, including two new orders (Sarcocornio pruinosae-Halimionetalia portulacoidis and Arthrocnemo macrostachyi-Suaedetalia braun-blanquetii).

Vitamins and mineral elements are among the most important phytochemicals due to their important role in the maintenance of human health. Despite these components had already been studied in different plant species, their full characterization in several wild species is still scarce. In addition, the knowledge regarding the in vivoeffects of phytochemicals, particularly their bioaccessibility, is still scarce. Accordingly, a membrane dialysis process was used to simulate gastrointestinal conditions in order to assess the potential bioaccessibility of mineral elements in different preparations of Achillea millefolium(yarrow), Laurus nobilis(laurel) and Taraxacumsect. Ruderalia(dandelion). The retention/passage dynamics was evaluated using a cellulose membrane with 34mm pore. Dandelion showed the highest levels of all studied mineral elements (except zinc) independently of the used formulations (dried plant or infusion), but yarrow was the only species yielding minerals after the dialysis step, either in dried form, or as infusion. In fact, the ability of each evaluated element to cross the dialysis membrane showed significant differences, being also highly dependent on the plant species. Regarding the potential use of these plants as complementary vitamin B9sources, the detected values were much lower in the infusions, most likely due to the thermolability effect.

A total of 75 surface samples collected from mosses in the Quercus pyrenaicaforests of the Spanish Central System mountains were analysed for their pollen content. The samples were taken from six different Quercus pyrenaicaphytosociological associations between 443 and 1657 m a.s.l. and fall within distinct rainfall and temperature regimes. The aims of this paper are to provide new data on the modern pollen rain from Central Spain, and to perform these data using multivariate statistics (hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis) and pollen percentages. We could distinguish first between unaltered and disturbed forest landscapes and among different Quercus pyrenaicaforest associations based on climatic gradients (rainfall pattern, summer moisture). This analysis allowed us to identify a set of pollen taxa markers which could assist in distinguishing these oak forest communities.

Our objective was to examine the age structure of successionally young and mature old-growth stands dominated by Quercus pyrenaica, widely distributed on silicious substrates at 400-1800 m elevation in the Iberian Peninsula, France, and Morocco. Many hectares of young forest are recovering from intensive grazing and wood cutting as a result of land abandonment during the past several decades. Eight early-successional undisturbed stands, one intermediate-aged stand, and four old-growth stands were sampled. Age was determined by coring a subset of trees of various diameters and applying a regression formula to the dbh of 1316 trees among all 13 stands, so that every diameter could be expressed in years of age. Linear regression formulas accounted for 69-81 % of all diameter-age variation. For young stands, almost 2/3 of all trees were 30-39 yr of age, a dip in regeneration characterized the most recent 30 yr, and the oldest tree encountered was 90 yr old. For old stands, more than half the trees were 56-125 yr of age, a dip in regeneration characterized the most recent 75 yr, and the oldest tree encountered was 358 yr old. Thus, both young and mature stands showed depressed regeneration for at least the past three decades, a phenomenon shared by ecologically related oaks in California, where such age structures are interpreted as evidence of long-term population imbalance and instability.

This paper reports a phytosociological study on Arrhenatherum bulbosum hay meadows in the main mountains of the Iberian Central Range (Spain). Multivariate techniques (Cluster analysis and DCA-ordination) were applied in the classification and ordination of relevé-units and species. Lithology, soil nutrient content and soil moisture were identified as the most important environmental gradients in determining their community diversity. A new association, Armerio segoviensis-Arrhenatheretum bulbosi, is proposed for this type of hay meadows. Lower ranking units, such as subassociations and ecological variants, explain the community diversity according to the ecological patterns revealed.

An HPLC method has been performed and validated for soluble sugar analysis in green bean samples (Phaseolus vulgariscv. Perona), with good linearity, accuracy and precision. Monosaccharides (fructose and glucose), disaccharide (sucrose) and the polyalcohol (myo-inositol) were identified in green beans samples, as well as two unknown compounds, whose content was less than 16% of total soluble sugars. Enzymatic assays using α-glucosidases were performed in order to clarify the identity of one of the components of this fraction (identified as myo-inositol). In all the batches of green beans analysed, fructose was the major sugar (0.88–1.44%), while sucrose (0.10–0.39%) and myo-inositol (0.08–0.66%) presented higher variability on the analysed samples.

Abstract:  A spectrofluorimetric method and a chromatographic method [high-performance liquid chromatography – ultraviolet (HPLC-UV) detection] were compared for vitamin C analysis of green beans. For HPLC-UV, the determination was performed before [ascorbic acid (AA)] and after reduction with dithiothreitol [AA + dehydroascorbic acid (DHAA)]; for spectrofluorimetry, DHAA was determined after oxidation with activated charcoal. The fluorimetric determination of DHAA before oxidation was also carried out, and showed good precision but poor accuracy (very high recovery percentages). HPLC-UV showed better linearity and sensitivity, while spectrofluorimetry was more precise. Both methods were suitable for green bean samples, and the choice of which one to use depends on the particular interest of the analysis: spectrofluorimetry may be preferable when the total content of vitamin C is required, but not for individual analysis of each form. HPLC-UV is more suitable when the interest of the analysis is the ascorbic acid form as a deterioration index of vegetable products.

•Stenosis >50% is present in only 10% of patients with cerebrovascular disease.•Ulcerations have found in 21% of patients studied with a cerebrovascular disease.•Carotid doppler ultrasound had 0% of sensibility to detect ulceration.•Diagnostic cerebral angiography continues the gold standard to carotid disease.

La miocardiopatía hipertrófica puede cursar con obstrucción del tracto de salida ventricular izquierdo. Son varias las estrategias terapéuticas que existen: farmacológica, marcapasos DDD, quirúrgica e inducción de infarto septal. Esta última es la más novedosa y con la que menos experienca existe. Presentamos un caso en el que persistía un grado notable de obstrucción sintomática a pesar de la medicación y el marcapasos DDD y en el que se aplicó la técnica de provocación de infarto septal. Los resultados fueron satisfactorios pero surgieron nuevas cuestiones relativas a tan atractivo procedimiento.

Karyological information about IberianGenistaspecies is limited because of their wide geographical distribution. It is a major factor in the understanding of a genus whose genetic evolution is mostly related to aneuploidy and euploidy. The chromosome numbers of the following taxa have been countedG. carpetanasubsp.carpetana(n=20),G. cinerascens(n=12),G. micrantha(n=18),G. mugronensissubsp.rigidissima(n=18),G. ramosissima(2n=48) andG. tinctoria(n=24). The previously-assumed uniformity of chromosome number (n=24) for all the subspecies ofG. cinereais supported here by data from subspp.murcicaandspeciosa. InG. florida, a new chromosome number,n=23, has been found for both subspecies (floridaandpolygaliphylla). A discussion of the discrepancies between these data and previous ones is included. A new level of ploidy has been found inG. tournefortiisubsp.tournefortii(n=32). The data stress the necessity of obtaining chromosomal information from a number of plants of a taxon before its characteristic number is clear, and indicate that more chromosomal data will help the understanding of the cytological diversity within taxa inGenista.

Las anomalías congénitas de las coronarias son infrecuentes y la coronaria derecha única es probablemente una de las más raras. Ha sido incluida dentro de las potencialmente malignas por su ocasional asociación con infartos o muerte súbita. Presentamos el caso de una paciente que refería dolores torácicos, que realizó una ergometría eléctricamente positiva y en la que en la coronariografía se observó una coronaria derecha única sin lesiones estenosantes. Discutimos la fisiopatología e implicaciones clínico-terapéuticas.

Presentamos el caso de un paciente de 44 años al que se realizó trasplante cardíaco ortotópico, por ser portador de miocardiopatía dilatada idiopática con hipertensión arterial pulmonar y resistencias arteriolares elevadas. Al salir de cirugía extracorpórea tras el trasplante sufrió una hipoxia grave, secundaria a un foramen oval permeable. Éste nunca había dado problemas en el donante, pero al someterlo a la situación hemodinámica especial de nuestro paciente, con presiones elevadas en el lado derecho, se abrió ocasionando un shunt derecha-izquierda significativo que provocó la hipoxia grave del receptor. Se realizó cierre quirúrgico del foramen oval.