Autonomous University of Barcelona
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Member of the Water and Global Change Research Group at the Centre for Research in Ecology and Forestry Applications (CREAF), at the Autonomous University of Barcelona
PhD in Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry and Legal Medicine at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and coordinator of the GRETA group (Research Group on Evaluation and Treatment of Self-harm)
Associate Professor (Professor Agregat Serra Hunter) at the Department of Applied Economics of the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona (UAB)
Head of Adult Mental Health at Fundació Hospitalàries Barcelona, assistant psychiatrist at the Vall d'Hebron University Hospital psychiatry department, and associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Legal Medicine at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB)
Professor of Ecology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and CREAF researcher
Senior researcher at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) of the Autonomous University of Barcelona
Professor Emeritus of Psychobiology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) and full member of the Spanish Academy of Psychology
Coordinator of the Neuro-oncology Unit of the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) and researcher of the Neuroplasticity and Regeneration Group of the Autonomous University of Barcelona
Juan de la Cierva researcher in the Department of Geology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona
A report by the Lancet Commission on Self-Harm highlights that at least 14 million episodes of self-harm occur each year - particularly among young people and in low- and middle-income countries. The paper argues that their impact has been neglected by governments globally and sets out a series of recommendations to reduce their incidence.
Newborns with Down syndrome, as they grow, face a higher risk of developing leukemia compared to those without the syndrome. An international team has sequenced the genes of more than 1.1 million cells from fetuses with and without Down syndrome, and it has discovered that the extra chromosome 21 they have alters the way DNA is packaged inside cells. According to the authors, whose research is published in Nature, this difference affects the regulation of certain genes and may contribute to the development of leukemia.
An international team of researchers has analyzed various data sources and scientific literature and identified 3,601 chemical substances in human samples such as blood, urine or breast milk that are known to be in contact with food, for example, because they are used in packaging. According to the authors of the study, “this work shows that food contact materials are not completely safe, even if they comply with regulations, because they transfer known substances to food". The research is published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
A study describes changes in a woman's brain during and after pregnancy, including a ‘pronounced’ decrease in grey matter volume and cortical thickness, and an increase in ventricular volume and cerebrospinal fluid. Some of the changes are maintained in the postpartum period; others reverse within months. The team performed 26 MRI scans and blood tests on one mother, from pre-conception until two years postpartum, and publish the results in Nature Neurology.
Brain maturation is measured by the thickness of the cortex. It is known that stress accelerates cortical thinning, which is associated with a higher risk of developing neuropsychiatric disorders. A study published in PNAS analyzes MRI data collected from 160 adolescents before COVID-19 and from 130 of them after the measures implemented during the pandemic. The comparison of brain structure before and after reveals accelerated cortical thinning which, measured in terms of equivalent years of brain development, was 4.2 years in girls and 1.4 years in boys.brain maturity
An international team of researchers has studied 241 brain-damaged people apparently unable to respond to external stimuli. Using techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging and electroencephalogram, they have detected signs of brain activity in 25 % of them that, according to the authors, ‘suggest that they may be interacting with the outside world’. The results are published in the journal NEJM.
The impact of animal abandonment goes beyond the pets who suffer it, it is a public health, safety and funding issue as well. Although there have been some improvements in recent years, the experts consulted agree that the system continues to fail. In this guide, we analyze what has changed, who does this issue affect, and what must be improved.
In an analysis published in Cell Reports Sustainability, an international team of researchers proposes a regular cash payment for the entire world population, which could increase global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 130 %. According to the authors, this basic income could be paid for, in part, by a tax on carbon emitters, which would also help to reduce environmental degradation.
The PsychENCODE consortium, established in 2015 and dedicated to illuminating the molecular mechanisms underlying schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and autism spectrum disorder, presents findings based on the examination of human brains at the cellular level. The studies are published today in the journals Science, Science Translational Medicine and Science Advances.
Research published a few days ago in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) found a considerable and hitherto unknown degree of micro- and nanoplastic contamination in human arteries. It was a bit of a surprise that NEJM accepted the paper, as it usually publishes little on the environmental causes of human disease. The good thing is that the publication makes visible, legitimises, stirs up and will encourage other similar work.