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Climate change and urbanization are rapidly increasing human exposure to extreme ambient temperatures, yet few studies have examined temperature and mortality in Latin America. We conducted a nonlinear, distributed-lag, longitudinal analysis of daily ambient temperatures and mortality among 326 Latin American cities between 2002 and 2015. We observed 15,431,532 deaths among ≈2.9 billion person-years of risk. The excess death fraction of total deaths was 0.67% (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.58–0.74%) for heat-related deaths and 5.09% (95% CI 4.64–5.47%) for cold-related deaths. The relative risk of death was 1.057 (95% CI 1.046–1.067%) per 1 °C higher temperature during extreme heat and 1.034 (95% CI 1.028–1.040%) per 1 °C lower temperature during extreme cold. In Latin American cities, a substantial proportion of deaths is attributable to nonoptimal ambient temperatures. Marginal increases in observed hot temperatures are associated with steep increases in mortality risk. These risks were strongest among older adults and for cardiovascular and respiratory deaths. An ecological analysis of 326 cities in 9 countries across Latin America found that changes in ambient temperature have a substantial contribution to all-cause mortality, with small increases in extreme heat associated with steep increases in mortality risk.

Background: Grade retention in compulsory secondary education is a commonly adopted action when students have academic achievement problems, but research has shown conflicting results. This study analyzes the relationship of school retention with academic performance, academic self-concept and goal orientation. Method: A longitudinal design was carried out, with a representative sample (N = 1326) of secondary school students from the Canary Islands (Spain), randomly selected and evaluated for 18 months in four different waves. Results: The results showed the negative effects of grade retention on academic performance and motivational variables. The capacity of previous performance, academic self-concept and goal orientation to predict the grade retention from six months before was also shown. Conclusions: These findings show the ineffectiveness of this strategy for the academic development of students, which should lead to educational authorities rethinking its use.

Cis-regulatory mutations underlie important crop domestication and improvement traits1,2. However, limited allelic diversity has hindered functional dissection of the large number of cis-regulatory elements and their potential interactions, thereby precluding a deeper understanding of how cis-regulatory variation impacts traits quantitatively. Here, we engineered over 60 promoter alleles in two tomato fruit size genes3,4 to characterize cis-regulatory sequences and study their functional relationships. We found that targeted mutations in conserved promoter sequences of SlCLV3, a repressor of stem cell proliferation5,6, have a weak impact on fruit locule number. Pairwise combinations of these mutations mildly enhance this phenotype, revealing additive and synergistic relationships between conserved regions and further suggesting even higher-order cis-regulatory interactions within the SlCLV3 promoter. In contrast, SlWUS, a positive regulator of stem cell proliferation repressed by SlCLV3 (refs. 5,6), is more tolerant to promoter perturbations. Our results show that complex interplay among cis-regulatory variants can shape quantitative variation, and suggest that empirical dissections of this hidden complexity can guide promoter engineering to predictably modify crop traits.

Emotional intelligence (EI) has been one of the topics with the most repercussion in the last decades in the fields of psychology and education, but its relationship with the academic performance of students has generated a lot of controversy in scientific research. The objective of the present study was to check the EI profiles of students when they finished primary school, and if there were any differences in the grade point average (GPA) between the EI profiles. The sample consisted of 1253 students (681 males; 572 females) from Tenerife (Spain) in the 6th grade of primary education, with an age range between 10 to 13 years old. The students’ EI was evaluated with the Emotional Quotient Inventory Young Version (EQi-YV). Academic performance was obtained from end-of-course grades. Cluster analysis identified the existence of five EI profiles at the end of primary education. There were no statistically significant differences in the GPA between the five groups of students, and trait EI had no influence on performance. These findings are in line with other research that questions the existence of a significant positive relationship between trait EI and academic performance.

We study the velocity fields of unforced, high Reynolds number, subsonic jets, issuing from round nozzles with turbulent boundary layers. The objective of the study is to educe wavepackets in such flows and to explore their relationship with the radiated sound. The velocity field is measured using a hot-wire anemometer and a stereoscopic, time-resolved PIV system. The field can be decomposed into frequency and azimuthal Fourier modes. The low-angle sound radiation is measured synchronously with a microphone ring array. Consistent with previous observations, the azimuthal wavenumber spectra of the velocity and acoustic pressure fields are distinct. The velocity spectrum of the initial mixing layer exhibits a peak at azimuthal wavenumbers $m$ ranging from 4 to 11, and the peak is found to scale with the local momentum thickness of the mixing layer. The acoustic pressure field is, on the other hand, predominantly axisymmetric, suggesting an increased relative acoustic efficiency of the axisymmetric mode of the velocity field, a characteristic that can be shown theoretically to be caused by the radial compactness of the sound source. This is confirmed by significant correlations, as high as 10 %, between the axisymmetric modes of the velocity and acoustic pressure fields, these values being significantly higher than those reported for two-point flow–acoustic correlations in subsonic jets. The axisymmetric and first helical modes of the velocity field are then compared with solutions of linear parabolized stability equations (PSE) to ascertain if these modes correspond to linear wavepackets. For all but the lowest frequencies close agreement is obtained for the spatial amplification, up to the end of the potential core. The radial shapes of the linear PSE solutions also agree with the experimental results over the same region. The results suggests that, despite the broadband character of the turbulence, the evolution of Strouhal numbers $0. 3\\leq St\\leq 0. 9$ and azimuthal modes 0 and 1 can be modelled as linear wavepackets, and these are associated with the sound radiated to low polar angles.

Heatwaves (HWs) pose a severe threat to human and ecological systems. Here we assess the projected changes in heatwaves over Latin America using bias corrected high-resolution regional climate simulations under two Representative Concentration Pathway scenarios (RCPs). Heatwaves are projected to be more frequent, long-lasting, and intense in the mid-century under both RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios, with severe increases under the RCP8.5 scenario. Even under the low emissions scenario of RCP2.6, the frequency of heatwaves doubles over most of the region. A three- to tenfold rise in population exposure to heatwave days is projected over Central and South America, with climate change playing a dominant role in driving these changes. Results show that following the low emission pathway would reduce 57% and 50% of heatwave exposure for Central and South American regions respectively, highlighting the need to control anthropogenic emissions and implement sustainable practices.

Plants are phytochemical hubs containing antioxidants, essential for normal plant functioning and adaptation to environmental cues and delivering beneficial properties for human health. Therefore, knowledge on the antioxidant potential of different plant species and their nutraceutical and pharmaceutical properties is of utmost importance. Exploring this scientific research field provides fundamental clues on (1) plant stress responses and their adaptive evolution to harsh environmental conditions and (2) (new) natural antioxidants with a functional versatility to prevent and treat human pathologies. These natural antioxidants can be valorized via plant-derived foods and products. Cuba contains an enormously rich plant biodiversity harboring a great antioxidant potential. Besides opening new avenues for the implementation of sustainable agroecological practices in crop production, it will also contribute to new strategies to preserve plant biodiversity and simultaneously improve nature management policies in Cuba. This review provides an overview on the beneficial properties of antioxidants for plant protection and human health and is directed to the valorization of these plant antioxidants, emphasizing the need for biodiversity conservation.

Among Parkinson's disease (PD) symptoms, freezing of gait (FoG) is one of the most debilitating. To assess FoG, current clinical practice mostly employs repeated evaluations over weeks and months based on questionnaires, which may not accurately map the severity of this symptom. The use of a non-invasive system to monitor the activities of daily living (ADL) and the PD symptoms experienced by patients throughout the day could provide a more accurate and objective evaluation of FoG in order to better understand the evolution of the disease and allow for a more informed decision-making process in making adjustments to the patient's treatment plan. This paper presents a new algorithm to detect FoG with a machine learning approach based on Support Vector Machines (SVM) and a single tri-axial accelerometer worn at the waist. The method is evaluated through the acceleration signals in an outpatient setting gathered from 21 PD patients at their home and evaluated under two different conditions: first, a generic model is tested by using a leave-one-out approach and, second, a personalised model that also uses part of the dataset from each patient. Results show a significant improvement in the accuracy of the personalised model compared to the generic model, showing enhancement in the specificity and sensitivity geometric mean (GM) of 7.2%. Furthermore, the SVM approach adopted has been compared to the most comprehensive FoG detection method currently in use (referred to as MBFA in this paper). Results of our novel generic method provide an enhancement of 11.2% in the GM compared to the MBFA generic model and, in the case of the personalised model, a 10% of improvement with respect to the MBFA personalised model. Thus, our results show that a machine learning approach can be used to monitor FoG during the daily life of PD patients and, furthermore, personalised models for FoG detection can be used to improve monitoring accuracy.

Virtual audits using Google Street View are an increasingly popular method of assessing neighborhood environments for health and urban planning research. However, the validity of these studies may be threatened by issues of image availability, image age, and variance of image age, particularly in the Global South. This study identifies patterns of Street View image availability, image age, and image age variance across cities in Latin America and assesses relationships between these measures and measures of resident socioeconomic conditions. Image availability was assessed at 530,308 near-road points within the boundaries of 371 Latin American cities described by the SALURBAL (Salud Urbana en America Latina) project. At the subcity level, mixed-effect linear and logistic models were used to assess relationships between measures of socioeconomic conditions and image availability, average image age, and the standard deviation of image age. Street View imagery was available at 239,394 points (45.1%) of the total sampled, and rates of image availability varied widely between cities and countries. Subcity units with higher scores on measures of socioeconomic conditions had higher rates of image availability (OR = 1.11 per point increase of combined index, p < 0.001) and the imagery was newer on average (− 1.15 months per point increase of combined index, p < 0.001), but image capture date within these areas varied more (0.59-month increase in standard deviation of image age per point increase of combined index, p < 0.001). All three assessed threats to the validity of Street View virtual audit studies spatially covary with measures of socioeconomic conditions in Latin American cities. Researchers should be attentive to these issues when using Street View imagery.

Background and ObjectivesOsteoarthrosis is a main cause of knee pain in the elderly. Pain associated with this condition is often refractory to conservative treatment. Total knee replacement may be the best option for severe pathologies; however, the occurrence of a chronic pain state after knee replacement has been well documented in the literature. The previous descriptions of the genicular nerves have been considered somewhat inaccurate. This innervation is complex and exhibits significant interindividual variability. A precise description of these nerves will increase our knowledge on different patterns and targets, to guide treatment and improve outcomes. The objective of this study was to determine sensory innervation patterns of the knee joint and correlate them with dynamic visualization via ultrasound imaging.MethodsSystematic cadaveric dissections were performed to determine different patterns of sensory innervation of the knee followed by ultrasonographic correlation. A short-axis ultrasound view of the nerves was used to inject India ink at several points along their course to facilitate the anatomic dissection and confirm their location among adjacent structures.ResultsThe visualized structures were the following: infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve, the branches to vastus medialis, intermedius, and lateralis muscles; obturator nerve; and lateral retinacular and recurrent peroneal nerves.ConclusionsWe conclude that reproducible correlations showing the sensory innervations for the knee are linked to muscular structures. However, high variability among individuals makes it difficult to predict their paths. Our systematic approach, using direct visualization via ultrasound, allows a more accurate placement of the needle for therapeutic purposes.