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Pham CK, Pereira JM, Frias JPGL, Ríos N, Carriço R, Juliano M, Rodríguez Y. Beaches of the Azores archipelago as transitory repositories for small plastic fragments floating in the North-East Atlantic. Environ Pollut 2020; 263:114494. [PMID: 32278235 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2020] [Revised: 03/22/2020] [Accepted: 03/28/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Plastic pollution is among the most pervasive stressors currently influencing the marine environment and affecting even the most remote areas. To date, there are still fundamental gaps in our understanding of the major pathways and fate of plastic debris in the oceans. Here we show that oceanic insular environments are important transitory repositories of small plastic items floating in the open ocean. Monthly monitoring of seven beaches over a three-year period demonstrate that beaches of the Azores islands with particular characteristics can capture significant quantities of fragments between 2 and 5 mm in length. The beach with the highest plastic loading rates was found to occasionally accumulate densities exceeding 15,000 fragments m-2 on part of the backshore. However, a large portion of these fragments can be rapidly washed back into the marine environment. Detailed characterization of those plastic items revealed the typology and size distribution to be similar throughout the seven beaches and through the 33 months surveyed, suggesting a same and unique source. Our results show that these oceanic islands of the North-East Atlantic are under pressure of high quantities of fragmented plastic debris that probably entered the ocean many years ago.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher K Pham
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal.
| | - João M Pereira
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal
| | - João P G L Frias
- MFRC - Marine and Freshwater Research Centre, Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), Dublin Road, Galway, H91 T8NW, Ireland
| | - Noelia Ríos
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal
| | - Rita Carriço
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal
| | - Manuela Juliano
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal
| | - Yasmina Rodríguez
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862, Horta, Portugal
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Herrera A, Raymond E, Martínez I, Álvarez S, Canning-Clode J, Gestoso I, Pham CK, Ríos N, Rodríguez Y, Gómez M. First evaluation of neustonic microplastics in the Macaronesian region, NE Atlantic. Mar Pollut Bull 2020; 153:110999. [PMID: 32275548 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.110999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2019] [Revised: 02/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Marine microplastic pollution is an issue of great concern nowadays since high concentrations have been detected in the ocean, mainly in the subtropical gyres that accumulate this type of debris. The long-term effects of this pollution on ecosystems and marine biota are still unknown. The aim of this study is to quantify and characterise microplastics and neustonic zooplankton in sub-surface waters of the Macaronesian region, an area that has been little studied to date. Our results show a great variability in the concentration of microplastics with values between 15,283 items/km2 in Los Gigantes (Tenerife, Canary Islands) and 1,007,872 items/km2 in Las Canteras (Gran Canaria, Canary Islands). The main types of debris found were plastic fragments and fibres. The abundances of neustonic zooplankton were also very variable between the different sampling areas, being the main components copepods and eggs. Regarding the microplastics-zooplankton ratio, values were obtained between 0.002 and 0.22. In Las Canteras, the highest accumulation zone, was found twice as much microplastics as zooplankton for the 1-5 mm fraction in dry weight. These values highlight the potential hazard of microplastics - and its associated chemical contaminants - for marine biota, especially for large filter feeders.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Herrera
- Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), IU- ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain.
| | - E Raymond
- Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), IU- ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - I Martínez
- Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), IU- ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - S Álvarez
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação (ARDITI), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
| | - J Canning-Clode
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação (ARDITI), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal; Centre of IMAR of the University of the Azores, Department of Oceanography and Fisheries, Azores, Portugal; Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, 647 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater, MD 21037, USA
| | - I Gestoso
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação (ARDITI), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal; Centre of IMAR of the University of the Azores, Department of Oceanography and Fisheries, Azores, Portugal
| | - C K Pham
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Horta 9901-862, Portugal
| | - N Ríos
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Horta 9901-862, Portugal
| | - Y Rodríguez
- IMAR/OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Horta 9901-862, Portugal
| | - M Gómez
- Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), IU- ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
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Ríos N, Frias JPGL, Rodríguez Y, Carriço R, Garcia SM, Juliano M, Pham CK. Spatio-temporal variability of beached macro-litter on remote islands of the North Atlantic. Mar Pollut Bull 2018; 133:304-311. [PMID: 30041319 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.05.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2018] [Revised: 05/14/2018] [Accepted: 05/18/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Marine litter has been identified as one of the major environmental problems that oceans are currently facing. Worldwide efforts are being made to reduce the input of litter into the oceans, and projects aimed at monitoring their quantities are key to evaluate their success. This study, provide baseline information on the quantities of marine litter found on 42 beaches spread throughout the nine islands of the Azores archipelago, North Atlantic Ocean. A total of 31,439 items were collected throughout the archipelago with an average density of 0.62 ± 0.15 macro-litter items m-2. Of this litter 87% were plastic and its majority (67%) plastic fragments. Six beaches were further monitored every three months for two years. Substrate type and wind exposure were important factors for explaining patterns of litter deposition. Our results highlight that marine litter have the tendency to accumulate in remote islands of the North Atlantic Ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noelia Ríos
- OMA - Observatório do Mar dos Açores, Fábrica da Baleia de Porto Pim, Monte da Guia, 9900 Horta, Faial, Portugal
| | - João P G L Frias
- MFRC - Marine and Freshwater Research Centre, Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), Dublin Road, Galway, Ireland; IMAR - Instituto do Mar, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Universidade dos Açores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
| | - Yasmina Rodríguez
- OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal; IMAR - Instituto do Mar, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Universidade dos Açores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
| | - Rita Carriço
- OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal; IMAR - Instituto do Mar, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, Universidade dos Açores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
| | - Sofia M Garcia
- DRAM - Direção Regional dos Assuntos do Mar/Regional Directorate for Sea Affairs, Secretaria Regional do Mar, Ciência e Tecnologia, Colónia Alemã - Apartado 9, 9900-014 Horta, Faial, Portugal
| | - Manuela Juliano
- OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
| | - Christopher K Pham
- OKEANOS - Universidade dos Açores, Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal.
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García G, Gutiérrez V, Ríos N, Turner B, Santiñaque F, López-Carro B, Folle G. Burst speciation processes and genomic expansion in the neotropical annual killifish genus Austrolebias (Cyprinodontiformes, Rivulidae). Genetica 2014; 142:87-98. [DOI: 10.1007/s10709-014-9756-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2013] [Accepted: 01/10/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE In patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C, Rome II) we determined if pelvic floor function correlates with rectal sensitivity and tone, and if the pelvic and rectal measurements correlate with symptoms. PATIENTS AND METHODS Sensory thresholds and tone in fasting and postprandial states were evaluated with an electronic barostat in 34 patients and 10 normal controls. The pelvic floor was assessed by defaecography. RESULTS Pain threshold to rectal distension was lower in IBS-C patients (P = 0.007). Postprandially, IBS-C patients showed lower values for sensation of gas, perception of urge, and pain threshold compared with controls. In IBS-C the anorectal angle widened less and showed less perineal mobility during defecation; the rectal tone in fasting IBS-C patients correlated with the angle at rest (P = 0.04) and with the perineal descent at rest (P = 0.01). The severity of abdominal discomfort or pain, and abdominal fullness correlated with the anorectal angle. The duration of symptoms and frequency of bowel movements correlated with perineal descent. Straining, mucus expulsion, and the feeling of incomplete evacuation correlated with rectal sensitivity variables. CONCLUSION Patients with IBS-C have lowered sensory thresholds for noxious and non-noxious stimuli, increased visceral sensitivity after food, less perineal mobility during defecation, and symptoms that correlate with rectal sensitivity and pelvic floor parameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- R A Awad
- Colon and Rectum Physiological Section, Experimental Medicine and Motility Unit, Gastroenterology Service, Mexico City General Hospital, Mexico City, Mexico.
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Rodríguez RI, Terriente J, Ríos N, Avila R, Roy M. [Teleradiology. The experience in Panamá]. Rev Med Panama 1998; 23:10-4. [PMID: 11214553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/19/2023]
Abstract
The technological advances have brought today procedures, that were not possible a few years ago. Telemedicine is one of them. Teleradiology in particular is one of the specialty where this application has been more important.
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Affiliation(s)
- R I Rodríguez
- Imagenología S.A. Médicos Radiólogos de la Clínica San Fernando
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Escalante A, Lichtenstein MJ, Ríos N, Hazuda HP. Measuring chronic rheumatic pain in Mexican Americans: cross-cultural adaptation of the McGill Pain Questionnaire. J Clin Epidemiol 1996; 49:1389-99. [PMID: 8970489 DOI: 10.1016/s0895-4356(96)00276-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
We performed a cross-cultural adaptation of the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) from English to Spanish for studying Mexican Americans in South Texas. Each of the 78 single-word pain descriptors in the original MPQ was translated into Spanish by a panel of nine bilingual health researchers, preserving the original structure of the questionnaire. The pain-intensity content (PIC) of the words in each language was then rated on a 100 mm visual analog scale by 8 bilingual health care providers and 10 bilingual health-care consumers. The correlation between Spanish and English average PIC ratings was strong (r = 0.85 for providers, r = 0.80 for consumers). The translated Spanish version was compared to the original English in a group of 50 bilingual Mexican-American patients with musculoskeletal pain, who completed the MPQ in both languages. There was no difference in Average Pain Rating Index between the Spanish and English versions (29.8 +/- 14.7 vs 29.1 +/- 15.8, p = 0.55), and agreement between the two language versions was almost perfect (ri = 0.85). Test-retest reliability was measured in two groups of hospitalized patients (25 per group), one composed of monolingual Spanish speakers and the other of monolingual English speakers. Each subject completed the MPQ, the McGill Pain Map, two 10-cm visual analog scales measuring pain now and within the past week, the bodily pain items of the MOS-SF36 survey, and the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire, on two occasions one day apart. Test-retest reliability of the Spanish and English components of the MPQ was not significantly different and was comparable to that of the other pain and health status instruments. We conclude that the Spanish MPQ is cross-culturally equivalent to the original English and has similar concurrent validity and reliability. This questionnaire is suitable for cross-cultural studies of pain comparing Spanish-speaking Mexican Americans with English-speaking members of the same and other ethnic groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Escalante
- Section of Rheumatology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 78284, USA
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