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Common altmetrics indices are limited and biased in the social media that they cover. In this Perspective, we highlight how and why altmetrics should broaden its scope to provide more reliable metrics for scientific content and communication., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2025 Jarić et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

During the trunk to tail transition the mammalian embryo builds the outlets for the intestinal and urogenital tracts, lays down the primordia for the hindlimb and external genitalia, and switches from the epiblast/primitive streak (PS) to the tail bud as the driver of axial extension. Genetic and molecular data indicate that Tgfbr1 is a key regulator of the trunk to tail transition. Tgfbr1 has been shown to control the switch of the neuromesodermal competent cells from the epiblast to the chordoneural hinge to generate the tail bud. We now show that in mouse embryos Tgfbr1 signaling also controls the remodeling of the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM) and of the embryonic endoderm associated with the trunk to tail transition. In the absence of Tgfbr1, the two LPM layers do not converge at the end of the trunk, extending instead as separate layers until the caudal embryonic extremity, and failing to activate markers of primordia for the hindlimb and external genitalia. The vascular remodeling involving the dorsal aorta and the umbilical artery leading to the connection between embryonic and extraembryonic circulation was also affected in the Tgfbr1 mutant embryos. Similar alterations in the LPM and vascular system were also observed in Isl1 null mutants, indicating that this factor acts in the regulatory cascade downstream of Tgfbr1 in LPM-derived tissues. In addition, in the absence of Tgfbr1 the embryonic endoderm fails to expand to form the endodermal cloaca and to extend posteriorly to generate the tail gut. We present evidence suggesting that the remodeling activity of Tgfbr1 in the LPM and endoderm results from the control of the posterior PS fate after its regression during the trunk to tail transition. Our data, together with previously reported observations, place Tgfbr1 at the top of the regulatory processes controlling the trunk to tail transition., Competing Interests: AL, AC, AN, YK, AJ, GM, AH, MM No competing interests declared, (© 2024, Lozovska et al.)

Invasive alien species negatively impact ecosystems, biodiversity, human societies, and economies. To prevent future invasions, it is crucial to understand both the ecological and the human and social factors determining whether a species is picked up, transported, and introduced beyond their native range. However, we often have little or no information on key human and social factors. Here, we explore how alien species introductions are shaped by a combination of ecological and human and social factors and highlight the potential of the emerging fields of conservation culturomics and iEcology for disentangling their relative importance. We argue that quantifying and assessing the relative importance of the human and social dimensions of alien species introductions can substantially improve our understanding of the invasion process., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The patchy distribution of trees typical of savannas often results in a discontinuous distribution of water, nutrient resources, and microbial communities in soil, commonly referred to as "islands of fertility". We assessed how this phenomenon may affect the establishment and impact of invasive plants, using the invasion of Opuntia stricta in South Africa's Kruger National Park as case study. We established uninvaded and O. stricta-invaded plots under the most common woody tree species in the study area (Vachellia nilotica subsp. kraussiana and Spirostachys africana) and in open patches with no tree cover. We then compared soil characteristics, diversity and composition of the soil bacterial communities, and germination performance of O. stricta and native trees between soils collected in each of the established plots. We found that the presence of native trees and invasive O. stricta increases soil water content and nutrients, and the abundance and diversity of bacterial communities, and alters soil bacterial composition. Moreover, the percentage and speed of germination of O. stricta were higher in soils conditioned by native trees compared to soils collected from open patches. Finally, while S. africana and V. nilotica trees appear to germinate equally well in invaded and uninvaded soils, O. stricta had lower and slower germination in invaded soils, suggesting the potential release of phytochemicals by O. stricta to avoid intraspecific competition. These results suggest that the presence of any tree or shrub in savanna ecosystems, regardless of origin (i.e. native or alien), can create favourable conditions for the establishment and growth of other plants., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Objective: To describe and compare the health status between vulnerable population participating in a program to tackle energy poverty (Energía, la justa) and the non-energy poor Barcelona (Spain) population and to analyse among participants the effect of energy poverty intensity on health., Method: Cross-sectional study based on data from program participants obtained before the intervention. Participants (1799 women and 671 men) were compared to non-energy poor population of Barcelona (1393 women and 1215 men) sampled from the Barcelona Public Health Survey (2016). Standardized prevalence and prevalence ratios of self-perceived poor health, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and depression and/or anxiety were estimated, and among participants the association between health status and energy poverty intensity was estimated with multivariate models., Results: The probability of poor self-perceived physical and mental health ranged from 2.2 to 5.3 times greater in the program participants than non-energy poor Barcelona population. Among program participants, those most affected were found to be the most likely to report poor health outcomes, regardless of other sociodemographic factors., Conclusions: The prevalence of poor physical and mental health was considerably higher among women and men participating in the programme compared to the non-energy poor population and was even worse among those who were more severely affected. Public policies that tackle energy poverty and its consequences are urgently needed in Spain., (Copyright © 2020 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Objective: This study aims to analyze the effects of housing insecurity on health and if those are modified by employment status of people belonging to "Treball als Barris" program in Barcelona between 2015 and 2016., Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study using a survey which included sociodemographic, employment and housing status information. This was administered to 469 individuals attended by "Treball als Barris" at baseline and after one year of follow-up. Then, we carried out a descriptive analysis and fitted regression models to estimate the effects of housing insecurity and employment status on health, and the interaction between them., Results: Among women, we found negative effects of housing insecurity on health (PR of poor self-reported health among women who stayed under housing insecurity was 2.29 [IC95%: 1.36-3.84] compared to those who stayed secured), while, among men, main effects on health were due to employment status (PR of poor self-reported health among men who were unemployed without subsidy was 3.16 [IC95%: 1.02-6.15] compared to those who were employed after follow-up). In addition, results suggest an interaction between housing and employment status on mental health among., Discussion: Housing insecurity rates have increased in last years. It produces negatives effects on health and can interact with other social determinants such as employment, mainly on men's mental health., (Copyright © 2019 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Urban Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool (HEART) is a tool developed by the World Health Organization whose objective is to provide evidence on urban health inequalities so as to help to decide the best interventions aimed to promote urban health equity. The aim of this paper is to describe the experience of implementing Urban HEART in Barcelona city, both the adaptation of Urban HEART to the city of Barcelona, its use as a means of identifying and monitoring health inequalities among city neighbourhoods, and the difficulties and barriers encountered throughout the process. Although ASPB public health technicians participated in the Urban HEART Advisory Group, had large experience in health inequalities analysis and research and showed interest in implementing the tool, it was not until 2015, when the city council was governed by a new left-wing party for which reducing health inequalities was a priority that Urban HEART could be used. A provisional matrix was developed, including both health and health determinant indicators, which allowed to show how some neighbourhoods in the city systematically fare worse for most of the indicators while others systematically fare better. It also allowed to identify 18 neighbourhoods-those which fared worse in most indicators-which were considered a priority for intervention, which entered the Health in the Barcelona Neighbourhoods programme and the Neighbourhoods Plan. This provisional version was reviewed and improved by the Urban HEART Barcelona Working Group. Technicians with experience in public health and/or in indicator and database management were asked to indicate suitability and relevance from a list of potential indicators. The definitive Urban HEART Barcelona version included 15 indicators from the five Urban HEART domains and improved the previous version in several requirements. Several barriers were encountered, such as having to estimate indicators in scarcely populated areas or finding adequate indicators for the physical context domain. In conclusion, the Urban HEART tool allowed to identify urban inequalities in the city of Barcelona and to include health inequalities in the public debate. It also allowed to reinforce the community health programme Health in the Barcelona Neighbourhoods as well as other city programmes aimed at reducing health inequalities. A strong political will is essential to place health inequalities in the political agenda and implement policies to tackle them.

This paper describes the methodology used for the assessment of health needs within a programme aimed at promoting health equity in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the city of Barcelona (Spain). The assessment process involves the use of mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) in order to obtain information regarding the health of the community, its determinants, and the availability of health-related assets. Quantitative data consists of indicators from different sources. Qualitative data collects the community's perspectives through interviews, focal groups and nominal groups. The combination of several data collection methods yields more complete information about the community, its needs and the resources available to meet them. Participation of community members in the process strengthens links between the community and the agents responsible for implementing the actions to address prioritised issues and favours community empowerment., (Copyright © 2018 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Prioritizing corresponds to the process of selecting and managing health needs identified after diagnosing the community's health needs and assets. Recently, the health needs assessment has been reinforced with the community perspective, providing multiple benefits: it sensitizes and empowers the community about their health, encourages mutual support among its members and promotes their importance by making them responsible for the process of improving their own reality. The objective of this paper is to describe the prioritization of Barcelona Salut als Barris, a community health strategy led by the Barcelona Public Health Agency to promote equity in health in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods of the city., (Copyright © 2017 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

The main objective of health reports is to contribute to the health improvement of a specific population. They are an essential support tool for the design and planning of health policies and can also be used for accountability and evaluation. This study assesses various types of health report, including that used by the City of Barcelona (Spain), with a focus on social determinants, as well as an international health report more centred on the impact of health services. Some suggestions are proposed about the appropriateness and best use of these documents, including: the need for effective communication between technical professionals and politicians through meetings and dialogue; commitment to transparency, both authors (by means of the declaration of interests) and in terms of the information reported and with the maximum level of participation; to promote the use of a conceptual framework of social determinants of health; a focus on health inequalities; the inclusion of information relevant to policy action; the organisation of information in such a way that it allows comparison or benchmarking with similar areas and prospectively; presenting the information in an attractive way using elements such as rankings, maps or other tools; and the design of communication strategies adapted to key stakeholders., (Copyright © 2016 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Understanding which species are introduced and become invasive, and why, are central questions in invasion science. Comparative studies on model taxa have provided important insights, but much more needs to be done to unravel the context dependencies of these findings. The cactus family (Cactaceae), one of the most popular horticultural plant groups, is an interesting case study. Hundreds of cactus species have been introduced outside their native ranges; a few of them are among the most damaging invasive plant species in the world. We reviewed the drivers of introductions and invasions in the family and seek insights that can be used to minimize future risks. We compiled a list of species in the family and determined which have been recorded as invasive. We also mapped current global distributions and modelled the potential global distributions based on distribution data of known invasive taxa. Finally, we identified whether invasiveness is phylogenetically clustered for cacti and whether particular traits are correlated with invasiveness. Only 57 of the 1922 cactus species recognized in this treatment have been recorded as invasive. There are three invasion hotspots: South Africa (35 invasive species recorded), Australia (26 species) and Spain (24 species). However, there are large areas of the world with climates suitable for cacti that are at risk of future invasion-in particular, parts of China, eastern Asia and central Africa. The invasive taxa represent an interesting subset of the total species pool. There is a significant phylogenetic signal: invasive species occur in 2 of the 3 major phylogenetic clades and in 13 of the 130 genera. This phylogenetic signal is not driven by human preference, i.e. horticultural trade, but all invasive species are from 5 of the 12 cactus growth forms. Finally, invasive species tend to have significantly larger native ranges than non-invasive species, and none of the invasive species are of conservation concern in their native range. These results suggest fairly robust correlates of invasiveness that can be used for proactive management and risk assessments., (Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company.)

Housing conditions can impact on physical and mental health through 4 interrelated dimensions: 1) the home (the emotional housing conditions), 2) the physical housing conditions, and 3) the physical environment, and 4) the social (community) environment of the neighborhood where the house is located. In Spain, the use of the construction market as an engine for economic growth and the promotion of private property as the main type of housing tenure has led to the use of housing as a speculative good instead of its being considered a first-necessity good. While Spain is the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) country with the largest housing stock per inhabitant, this stock is highly underutilized, thus excluding the most deprived sector of the population from access to housing. The impact of the current economic crisis on housing has mainly been due to a reduction in household income, which has increased the number of families or persons struggling to cover their housing costs or being evicted. Evidence indicates that this type of problem has a negative impact on health, especially on mental health, but financial problems also make it difficult to meet other basic needs such as eating. There are several instruments to reduce the impact of the economic crisis, such as debt financing or deed of assignment in payment. In the long-term, the creation of a social housing stock should be promoted, as well as rental assistance mechanisms., (Copyright © 2013 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.)

Road traffic injury surveillance involves methodological difficulties due, among other reasons, to the lack of consensus criteria for case definition. Police records have usually been the main source of information for monitoring traffic injuries, while health system data has hardly been used. Police records usually include comprehensive information on the characteristics of the crash, but often underreport injury cases and do not collect reliable information on the severity of injuries. However, statistics on severe traffic injuries have been based almost exclusively on police data. The aim of this paper is to propose criteria based on medical records to define: a) "Hospital discharge for traffic injuries", b) "Person with severe traffic injury", and c) "Death from traffic injuries" in order to homogenize the use of these sources., (Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Espana.)

Background: In the last few years, several non-pharmacological interventions have been developed to prevent age-associated cognitive deterioration, specifically memory deterioration. The effectiveness of these interventions has not been sufficiently evaluated., Objective: To determine the effectiveness of cognitive interventions in preventing age-associated memory impairment by means of a literature review., Methods: An exhaustive search was carried out in PubMed. Studies published from 1990 onwards that assessed the effectiveness of cognitive interventions on memory outcomes in older adults without mild cognitive impairment or dementia were included. The studies were classified according to their quality. The short- and long-term effects of the interventions on objective and subjective memory tasks and transfer of gains to other cognitive domains were assessed., Results: Twenty-five studies met the inclusion criteria. Eleven (44%) were considered high-quality, of which all except one reported improved memory outcomes. The most common type of memory assessed was recent verbal objective memory, which improved in eight out of nine high-quality studies. Recent non-verbal and association objective memory, mainly assessed in medium-quality studies, improved in four out of seven and in 10 out of 11 studies, respectively. The results concerning subjective memory were heterogeneous. Transfer of gains was only observed in one out of seven high-quality studies., Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that certain cognitive interventions performed in healthy older adults are effective in preventing cognitive deterioration, especially recent verbal memory.