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IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is a progressive form of kidney disease defined by glomerular deposition of IgA. Here we performed a genome-wide association study of 10,146 kidney-biopsy-diagnosed IgAN cases and 28,751 controls across 17 international cohorts. We defined 30 genome-wide significant risk loci explaining 11% of disease risk. A total of 16 loci were new, including TNFSF4/TNFSF18, REL, CD28, PF4V1, LY86, LYN, ANXA3, TNFSF8/TNFSF15, REEP3, ZMIZ1, OVOL1/RELA, ETS1, IGH, IRF8, TNFRSF13B and FCAR. The risk loci were enriched in gene orthologs causing abnormal IgA levels when genetically manipulated in mice. We also observed a positive genetic correlation between IgAN and serum IgA levels. High polygenic score for IgAN was associated with earlier onset of kidney failure. In a comprehensive functional annotation analysis of candidate causal genes, we observed convergence of biological candidates on a common set of inflammatory signaling pathways and cytokine ligand–receptor pairs, prioritizing potential new drug targets.

The article explores the transformations of Spanish and Catalan national identities and the growth of the pro-independence movement in Catalonia following the 2008 global recession. It argues that the Great Recession provided a new historical context of hot nationalism in which Catalanist narratives of loss and resistance began to ring true to large sectors of Catalan society, whereas the Spanish constitutionalist narratives seemed increasingly outdated. The article also shows the limits of the process of mass nationalization by both the Catalan and the Spanish governments and the eventual ‘crystallization’ of an identity and political divide between pro and anti-independence supporters which split Catalan society down the middle and led to a sort of national identity deadlock.

On March 23, 1981 Jordi Pujol gave a speech regarding the exhibition Catalunya Avui. The President of the Generalitat proudly expressed the artistic wealth of Catalonia, reminding the audience that when they hear of Tàpies, Miró, Dalí, and even Picasso they ought to remember their Catalan heritage. For Pujol in the 1980s, Tàpies had already made his mark as an important figure within el poblé Català. In 2014, after a referendum regarding Catalan independence, Artur Mas spoke to the press about the event. He was photographed in a room with Tàpies’s enormous painting Les quatre cròniques (1990) looming in the background. In a political climate dramatically different from when the painting was created, the image took on new meanings. This investigation analyzes Tàpies’s style, the institutional support that he received, the historical context of his artistic exhibitions, and the bilateral relationship between politics and art.

Objetivos: Evaluar la utilidad de la obstrucción del tracto de salida del ventrículo izquierdo latente (OTSVI) y variables del eco-estrés en el pronóstico de miocardiopatía hipertrófica. Materiales y métodos: Estudio retrospectivo y observacional. Se evaluaron 110 pacientes con miocardiopatía hipertrófica mediante eco-estrés con ejercicio. Fueron divididos en tres grupos; G1: OTSVI persistente (gradiente ≥30mmHg en reposo); G2: OTSVI latente (gradiente ≥50mmHg con ejercicio); G3: sin OTSVI. La mediana de seguimiento fue 2,7 años. Se definió punto final primario a muerte, muerte súbita, taquicardia ventricular sostenida o internación por insuficiencia cardíaca. Resultados: El 19,1% pertenecían a G1, 31.8% G2 y 49,1% G3. Las variables del eco-estrés asociadas al punto final primario difirieron entre los grupos (G1>G2>G3). Se evaluaron pruebas ergométricas insuficientes (57%>37%>33%; p=0,164), síntomas (57%>31%>17%; p<0,002), taquicardia ventricular no sostenida (0,1%>0,6%>0%; p=0,054) e insuficiencia mitral moderada-severa al final del ejercicio (86%>71%>0,28%; p<0,01). No hubo diferencias entre grupos para cambios del segmento ST-T y comportamiento anormal de la presión arterial con el esfuerzo. Las variables predictoras independientes del punto final primario en el análisis multivariado fueron la OTSVI persistente (OR:13,2; IC:1,3-133,5); comportamiento anormal de la presión arterial durante el ejercicio (OR:6,3; IC:0,7-55,6) y los Mets alcanzados con una relación inversa (OR:0,77; IC:0,62-0,95). Conclusión: La OTSVI latente no se asoció con un mayor número de eventos en el seguimiento. La OTSVI persistente, el comportamiento anormal de la presión arterial con el esfuerzo y los Mets alcanzados se asociaron en forma independiente al punto final primario en una población con miocardiopatía hipertrófica de Argentina.

In recent years, it has been a common complaint among scholars to acknowledge the lack of research on Spanish nationalism. This article addresses the gap by giving an historical overview of ‘ethnic’ and ‘civic’ Spanish nationalist discourses during the last two centuries. It is argued here that Spanish nationalism is not a unified ideology but it has, at least, two varieties. During the 19th-century, both a ‘liberal’ and a ‘conservative-traditionalist’ nationalist discourse were formulated and these competed against each other for hegemony within the Spanish market of ideas. In the 20th-century, these two discourses continued to be present and became backbones of different political regimes. However, after the emergence of the Basque and Catalan nationalist movements, Spanish nationalists unified as a counter-force to these regional sources of identity. In fact, one can see 20th-century Spanish nationalism as a dialectical struggle between the centre and the periphery.

En los últimos años, y cada vez más asiduamente, novedosos neologismos se han incorporado a la jerga habitual del ciudadano argentino medio, y frecuentemente han provocado encendidas polémicas. En efecto, es cada vez más frecuente para cualquier ciudadano, no sólo de nuestro país, sino también de otros países sudamericanos, oír palabras como “mercado ampliado”, “MERCOSUR”, “Grupo o Consejo del Mercado Común”, “Normativa Mercosureña”, zona aduanera, integración, etc. Inclusive podemos leer la palabra MERCOSUR desde hace varios años en el casillero destinado a “lugar de expedición”, además de la ciudad argentina correspondiente, en las cédulas de identidad federales y pasaportes emitidos por las autoridades policiales federales argentinas. Veamos entonces a qué nos estamos refiriendo cuando hablamos con cierta ligereza de este novedoso y en una primera aproximación promisorio Mercado Común del Sur, más conocido por su abreviatura, MERCOSUR., Fil: Serra Quiroga, Alejandro D.. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo; Argentina.

El pastoreo continuo en los pastizales de altura de las Sierras de Humaya produce una profunda modificación en la estructura de la comunidad vegetal. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar la magnitud del efecto del pastoreo por ganado doméstico sobre la acumulación de biomasa de la comunidad vegetal, y cómo afecta el pastoreo continuo el escurrimiento, la infiltración y la pérdida de suelo. Las tareas de campo se realizaron entre los meses de septiembre de 2000 y septiembre de 2002, en un área clausurada al ganado doméstico en noviembre de 1996, y en una adyacente. El pastoreo continuo no afectó a la cobertura vegetal, pero promovió una estructura de tipo césped, provocando un aumento de la escorrentía superficial y la exportación de sedimentos. La exclusión de pastoreo favoreció el establecimiento de especies de los géneros Festuca sp. y Stipa sp., The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of livestock grazing on plant biomass accumulation, and the way continuous grazing affects runoff, infiltration rate and soil loss. A field study was conducted between September 2000 and September 2002 in a fenced area, closed to domestic livestock in November 1996, and in an adjacent grazed area. Continuous grazing did not affect plant cover, but maintained a lawn-like structure, promoting surface runoff and sediment transport. Grazing exclusion favored the establishment of species of the genus Festuca sp. and Stipa sp.

Los bosques de Aspidosperma quebracho blanco y de Prosopis nigra, del Chaco Árido de la provincia de Catamarca en Argentina, han sido explotados para la obtención de madera, leña y producción de carbón sin considerar su capacidad de renuevo. En consecuencia, los ecosistemas involucrados se encuentran en distintas fases de sucesión secundaria según la intensidad y al tiempo de explotación al que fueron sometidos. Para esta área no se conocen estudios a nivel de detalle de las características estructurales de sus masas boscosas. Es objetivo de este trabajo detectar el estado actual de las poblaciones de quebracho blanco y algarrobo negro del Campo Experimental que la Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias de la Universidad Nacional de Catamarca posee en el departamento Capayán de la provincia de Catamarca. Los resultados obtenidos indican que ambas poblaciones se encuentran en distintas fases de crecimiento: la de Prosopis nigra muestra una distribución estacionaria, mientras que Aspidosperma quebracho blanco una distribución en expansión.

Support for Ciudadanos has risen substantially in Spanish opinion polls over recent months, with the party in first place in several cases. But is the party really on the brink of taking over from Mariano Rajoy's People's Party and becoming the dominant force in Spanish politics? Alejandro Quiroga highlights several factors, including the crisis over Catalan independence, that are currently working in the favour of Ciudadanos, but notes there are still major challenges that will have to be overcome if the party is to translate its polling figures into an election victory.

This weekend Spain’s two most successful football clubs, Barcelona and Real Madrid, will play each other in Spain’s national football league. As Alejandro Quiroga writes, the fixture between the two sides – commonly referred to as ‘el clásico’ – has increasingly become associated with the issue of Catalan independence. However he argues that support for the Spanish national team among citizens in Catalonia highlights that Spanish and Catalan identities are not necessarily incompatible.

Jordi Pujol, the former president of the Catalan government between 1980 and 2003, has faced a corruption scandal in recent months. Alejandro Quiroga writes on the potential impact the affair might have on the campaign for Catalonia’s independence from Spain. He argues that while the scandal may have undermined attempts to draw a distinction between corruption in the Spanish government and the actions of politicians in Catalonia, it is unlikely to significantly damage the wider independence movement.

A surge in support for two parties – Podemos and Ciudadanos – ahead of the Spanish general election later this year has led some commentators to ask whether Spain’s two party system, which has traditionally been dominated by the centre-left PSOE and centre-right People’s Party, is coming to an end. Alejandro Quiroga writes on how support for the parties sits following parliamentary elections in Andalusia on 22 March. He argues that while municipal and regional elections in May will give a better idea of how the general election might go, it remains far from clear that the era of two party politics is finished in Spain.

Catalonia held elections on 27 September, with the poll being framed by several parties as a de facto vote on Catalan independence. The final result produced a majority of seats in the Catalan Parliament for pro-independence parties, with these parties securing 47.8 per cent of the votes cast. We asked some of EUROPP’s contributors for their reaction to the result and what it means for Catalonia and Spain going forward. Jonathan Hopkin: “The elections have produced a very complex outcome” Luis Moreno: “The Spanish elections in December will be crucial in determining what happens next” Alejandro Quiroga: “Artur Mas might have more pressing issues than the declaration of independence in the short term” Jose Javier Olivas: “Unilateral solutions, even when they seek to impose the ‘will of the majority’, are unlikely to deliver satisfactory results in the long run” Karlo Basta: “All sides have at least some leverage, and the true commitments of none are fully known, confounding any reliable predictions” Joan Costa Font: “The independence cause has attained an exceptional result, now it is time to either negotiate a referendum or, failing this, prepare for an orderly break up“ Mireia Borrell Porta: “A referendum has now become unavoidable”

In Iberian Military Politics: Controlling the Armed Forces During Dictatorship and Democratisation , José Javier Olivas Osuna traces the divergent trajectories of civil-military relations in Portugal and Spain from the 1930s to the 1980s. This book offers a convincing challenge to the idea of a shared Iberian pathway through dictatorship and democratisation, finds Alejandro Quiroga.

Last week saw the first elections to be held in the Basque Country since the end of ETA’s armed separatist campaign last year. Alejandro Quiroga reflects on the results of the election, which saw the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) gain the largest number of seats in Parliament. Although the PNV’s leadership do not view a referendum on Basque independence as a priority, they may be tempted to promote secessionism as a solution to the Basque Country’s economic problems should the current crisis deepen.