BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//IDAEA - ECPv6.18.2//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:IDAEA
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://idaea.csic.es
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for IDAEA
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:Europe/Madrid
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20190331T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20191027T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20200329T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20201025T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20210328T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20211031T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20220327T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20221030T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20230326T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20231029T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0200
TZNAME:CEST
DTSTART:20240331T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0200
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:CET
DTSTART:20241027T010000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20230118T120000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20230118T130000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162737Z
CREATED:20230117T085443Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162737Z
UID:13899-1674043200-1674046800@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Rosa Lara
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Rosa Lara\, from the EGAR group\, will defend her thesis on 18 January at 12:00h in Sala de Proyectos at Escuela Politécnica de Gijón. \nTitle: Suspended and settleable particulate matter in the western area of the conurbation of Gijón \nDirectors: Xavier Querol and Luis Negral \nThesis Committee: Stella Moreno\, Andrés Alastuey\, Jesús de la Rosa\, Beatriz Suárez-Peña and Leonor Castrillón \nAbstract: \nAir pollution is one of the leading causes of premature deaths in Europe. Above all autonomous communities in Spain\, Asturias is one of the latest to comply with the PM10 limit values established by state regulations. One of the areas of particular concern is identified in the western area of the conurbation of Gijón\, which is noted for the persistence of significant levels of suspended and settleable particulate matter. This is an area of intense industrial activity\, in which an integrated steel plant\, a port with the state’s largest bulk solid traffic\, coal and mineral stockyards\, a cement plant\, and a coal-fired power plant exist\, among others. The high levels of PM recorded in the area\, together with the presence of sources of fugitive PM emissions and the persistence of high levels of atmospheric deposition in the area\, highlight the need to deepen knowledge of the characterization of these pollutants\, as well as the identification and quantification of their principal sources.\nRegarding the study of PM\, a sampling campaign was carried out between May 2019 and September 2020 employing a high-volume collector equipped with a selective PM10 head. 447 24-h samples were collected. A representative part of the samples (32%) was chemically characterized. For the study of atmospheric deposition\, a sampling campaign was carried out between December 2019 and June 2020\, employing a self-designed and self-built collector located in five different sites to obtain representative samples attending to the spatial variability. Rainy days were avoided to collect the samples in the best conditions for the dispersion of settleable particulate matter. 150 24-h samples (30 per location) of dry atmospheric deposition (DSPM) were collected and chemically characterized.\nMobility and industrial activity restrictions\, derived from the COVID-19 pandemic\, occurred during both sampling campaigns\, subsequently leading to the possibility of analysing their impact on PM10 and DSPM levels. During strict confinement\, there was an increase of 9.1% in the PM10 concentration\, mainly due to the increase in secondary inorganic aerosol\, favoured by meteorological conditions. In DSPM\, significant reductions (>74%) in sites closest to the industrial activity. However\, these reductions should be taken with caution because of the variation in the wind dynamics of the compared periods.\nThe assessment of source apportionment for PM10 and DSPM was carried out by using the PMF multivariate receptor model. Regarding PM10\, eight contribution sources were identified: “Biomass burning”\, “Iron and steel combustion”\, “Secondary nitrate”\, “Secondary sulfate”\, “Sinter”\, “Fugitive from iron and steel resuspension”\, “Local diffuse” (mixture of resuspension of abrasion products from brakes and wheels\, and industrial metals deposited on the road surface) and “Marine aerosol”. Regarding DSPM\, two sources were identified in the stations that presented higher levels of DSPM: “Sinter/Steelmaking” and “Resuspension of contaminated crustal”. The other two stations also presented a factor associated with marine aerosol and\, in the more rural one\, a factor associated with biomass burning was detected.\nFuture air quality policies should consider measures to reduce anthropogenic emissions of PM10 and DSPM with the aim of reducing their impact in industrialized urban/suburban areas. The results also highlight the need to take environmental action on the secondary PM precursor gases to reduce PM10 and PM2.5 levels efficiently.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-rosa-lara/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/rosalara_thesis-Defence.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20230113T113000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20230113T133000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162730Z
CREATED:20230109T072933Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162730Z
UID:13897-1673609400-1673616600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Adrià Sunyer Caldú
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Adrià Sunyer Caldú\, from the ENFOCHEM group\, will defend his thesis on 13 January at 11:30h in the Aula Enric Casassas of the Faculty of Chemistry at the Universitat de Barcelona. \nTitle: Combination of target and non-target analysis for the identification and determination of contaminants of emerging concern \nDirectors: Silvia Diaz Cruz and Pablo Gago Ferrero \nThesis Committee:  Víctor Matamoros\, Lubertus Bijlsma and Jana Weiss \nAbstract: \nContaminants of emerging concern (CECs) are those that have been detected in the environment and/or in humans\, can cause ecological or human health impacts\, and are normally not regulated. Their continuous introduction into the environment (favoured by conventional wastewater treatments’ inefficiency in their degradation)\, pseudo-persistence\, and intrinsic ability to interfere with organisms\, concern the scientific and public community. Their potential toxic effects can threaten the ecological status of water bodies as well as human health. There is a need to know what these contaminants are and understand their occurrence\, fate and transformation processes in the environment. In the current context of climate change\, circular economy processes acquire great importance. In this regard\, the reuse of waste and reclaimed water is applied as a helpful solution to alleviate water scarcity and enable better use of resources. However\, this approach is not exempt from risk\, since the water-borne contaminants can be translocated into crops after irrigation\, constituting a threat to human health. Likewise\, there are other routes of exposure to CECs that should be studied\, and human biomonitoring is necessary to address specific exposures. In this thesis\, powerful analytical methodologies were developed and applied in the different stages of the CECs cycle\, from their release until they are degraded (transformed) or (bio)accumulated. The presence of different types of CECs including personal care products (PCPs)\, pharmaceuticals\, biocides and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was assessed in different environmental compartments. Advanced target and non-target approaches were applied to expand the knowledge of the presence of these chemicals and their derived transformation products in water\, sediment\, biota\, and crops. Special emphasis was placed on evaluating the wastewater reuse feasibility for irrigation purposes in agriculture. Finally\, human exposure to CECs was evaluated\, putting a special focus on prenatal exposure at the early stage of development through the analysis of umbilical cord blood. Thus\, this thesis has contributed to improving the understanding and knowledge about CECs occurrence\, removal\, transformation\, transfer\, and fate in aquatic ecosystems\, agrifood environment and\, ultimately\, humans.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-adria-sunyer-caldu/
LOCATION:Aula Magna\, Facultat Química (UB)
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/tesis_adriasunyer.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20221220T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20221220T130000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162725Z
CREATED:20221130T071732Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162725Z
UID:13896-1671534000-1671541200@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Jesús Yus
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Jesús Yus from the EGAR group\, will defend his thesis on 20 December at 11:00h in the Aula Eduard Fontserè of the Faculty of Physics at the Universitat de Barcelona. \nTitle: Understanding the measurement and variability of aerosol optical properties in NE Spain \nDirectors: Andrés Alastuey and Marco Pandolfi \nThesis Committee:  Olivier Favez\, Alberto Cazorla and Yolanda Solá \nAbstract: \nAtmospheric aerosol particles play a key role in Earth’s climate by regulating the formation of clouds\, and therefore modifying the Earth’s albedo and the hydrological cycle\, as well as a consequence of their direct interaction with solar and terrestrial electromagnetic radiation\, among many more processes. Overall\, aerosol particles effect on the Earth’s radiative balance is to cool the atmosphere\, however\, there are still large uncertainties related\, mainly associated to their spatial and temporal distribution\, their concentration levels and the absorption properties of the most important absorbers\, namely black carbon (BC)\, brown carbon (BrC) and potentially mineral dust particles. This PhD thesis focuses on providing an in-depth characterization of the optical properties of these particles in an area in the Western Mediterranean\, the NE Spain. More\, specifically in the improvement of the characterization of the absorption measurements\, an analysis of the effect that the mixing of BC particles with other organic aerosols has on their absorption properties\, and determining the optical properties of these particles\, and especially of mineral dust\, under different meteorological scenarios.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-jesus-yus/
LOCATION:Aula Eduard Fontserè\, Facultat de Física i Química (UB)
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/tesis_jesusyus.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20221117T120000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20221117T140000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162703Z
CREATED:20221019T082006Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162703Z
UID:13888-1668686400-1668693600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Raimon Martínez Prats
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Raimon Martínez Prats from the Geochemistry and Pollution research group\, will defend his thesis on 17 November at 12:00h in the Aula Magna of the Faculty of Earth Sciences at the Universitat de Barcelona. \nTitle: Passive Air and Water Sampling in High-Altitude Lakes: Occurrence and Distribution of Legacy and Emerging Organic Pollutants \nDirectors: Joan Grimalt and Pilar Fernández \nThesis Committee: Encarnación Moyano\, Jordi Catalan and Esteban Abad \nAbstract: \nRemote high mountains allow the study of the environmental fate of legacy and emerging anthropogenic chemicals that form a worldwide diffuse background layer of pollution. Semi-volatile compounds like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)\, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)\, organophosphate esters (OPEs)\, and other organochlorine compounds like hexachlorobenzene (HCB) have become ubiquitous by undergoing long-range atmospheric transport\, penetrating other environmental compartments (e.g.\, water\, soils\, sediments\, and biota)\, and often remaining unperturbed due to their high resistance to degradation. Moreover\, pollutant levels in high mountains tend to be amplified because of cold-trapping\, a series of physical and thermodynamical processes that occur at low temperatures and high altitudes. Toxic effects in living organisms have been linked to the exposure to these chemicals\, thus constituting a threat to the health of some of the most fragile ecosystems of the world.\nHowever\, high mountains pose a set of unique challenges that complicate the assessment of pollutant levels (e.g.\, inaccessibility and harsh environmental and meteorological conditions). In recent decades\, passive samplers have provided an alternative way of monitoring pollutants with significant benefits for studying remote sites: low cost\, ease of use\, no energy supply required\, deployment in environmental matrices (e.g.\, air and water) for extended periods\, and time-integrated assessment of average pollutant levels. Here\, passive samplers were used for the determination of semi-volatile and hydrophobic organic compounds in air and water from six alpine lacustrine areas forming an altitudinal gradient in the Pyrenees (1619 to 2453 m above sea level). Polyurethane foam (PUF) was used for the atmospheric gas-phase\, and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and silicone rubber (SR) were used for the dissolved phase of water. The performance and uncertainty of these methods were adequate\, even in a remote environment with trace-level pollutant concentrations.\nLong-term trends in pollutant levels in air and water from the Pyrenees were studied. Persistent compounds like PCBs and HCB were found at levels very similar to those reported over two decades ago in the same area. PAHs\, less persistent\, were detected at half of their previously measured concentrations\, agreeing with estimated reductions of their emissions. Atmospheric concentrations of half of the studied pollutants significantly increased with temperature\, showing the influence of re-volatilization from surfaces (e.g.\, soils\, water\, snow).\nSecondary emissions were prominent for OPEs and the heavier PCBs and PAHs\, as their lower volatilities cause them to partition more prominently towards other environmental compartments. HCB and the lighter PAHs and PCBs did not present significant changes with temperature\, as expected from their higher volatility. Diffusive exchange fluxes between air and water at the lakes showed deposition of actively emitted PAHs\, slight deposition or near-equilibrium state for most PCBs\, OPEs\, and other chlorinated compounds\, and slight volatilization of HCB and the diagenetically generated methylated PAH retene. Overall\, this high-mountain region may be acting as a sink for several pollutants that accumulate in its surfaces\, but some compounds may reach equilibrium between air and other compartments and may experience seasonal secondary emissions.\nAdditionally\, passive air samplers were used for the study of pollutant levels in the city of Barcelona. Most pollutants in air presented concentrations up to more than two orders of magnitude higher than in the Pyrenees. Since these measurements were performed before and during the implementation of restrictive lockdown measures at the beginning of the COVID-19 global pandemic\, sudden changes in the composition of atmospheric organic pollution caused by an unprecedented halt in anthropogenic activities were also assessed. The concentrations of PAHs\, PCBs\, HCB\, and other organochlorine compounds decreased by 60 to 91%\, but OPE concentrations remained stable because their release is diffusive and does not depend directly on the activities that stopped during restrictions.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-raimon-martinez-prats/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thesisraimon.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220905T113000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220905T143000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162628Z
CREATED:20220714T090927Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162628Z
UID:13876-1662377400-1662388200@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Miriam Carolina Pérez Cova
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Miriam Carolina Pérez Cova from the Chemometrics research group\, will defend her thesis on 5 September at 11:30h in the Aula Magna Enric Cassasas  of the Faculty of Chemistry at the Universitat de Barcelona. \nTitle: Development and application of analytical and chemometric methodology for environmental metabolomic studies based on one-and two-dimensional liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry \nDirectors: Joaquim Jaumot and Romà Tauler \nThesis Committee: Sílvia Lacorte\, Yvan Vander Heyden\, Miguel Herrero \nAbstract: \nChemical exposure to emerging contaminants (ECs) is a major concern nowadays. These ECs have recently become a global environmental threat\, and an in-depth characterization of their occurrence and toxic impact is needed. In this context\, omic sciences have arisen as powerful tools to shed some light on the biological mechanisms affected by exposure to these chemicals. Particularly\, metabolomics and lipidomics can provide a snapshot of what is actually happening at the molecular level\, pointing to metabolic pathways affected by the contaminants. New analytical methodologies are required to extract the sought information in more complex biological matrices (from single cells to whole organisms). Hence\, a major emphasis has been put on developing multidimensional separations and multiplatform approaches to increase the metabolome coverage. However\, these novel approaches bring about massive datasets\, and the complexity of the data analysis augments considerably. Therefore\, chemometric strategies are a perfect match to get through this bottleneck and provide useful tools to obtain the most from the data collected.\n \nIn this PhD Thesis\, the focus was set on developing analytical protocols\, especially using two-dimensional liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC×LC-MS)\, as well as chemometric data analysis strategies applicable to environmental metabolomic studies. On the one hand\, LC×LC-MS methods have been developed for both untargeted and targeted analyses. Active modulation strategies have been also successfully implemented in the multidimensional chromatographic separation of lipids. On the other hand\, the Regions Of Interest (ROI) approach for compression and filtering has been validated for LC×LC-MS analyses. Regarding chemometric resolution methods (i.e.\, which allow obtaining quantitative and qualitative information from the sample constituents)\, and due to deviations from an ideal trilinear behavior presented by LC×LC datasets\, the use of the Multivariate Curve Resolution Alternating Least Squares (MCR-ALS) method has been preferred. Different quantification strategies have been tested based on the Regions Of Interest Multivariate Curve Resolution (ROIMCR) approach. In addition\, several multivariate statistical methods based on the analysis of variance (ANOVA) have been compared for metabolomic studies. As a result\, a combination of ANOVA-simultaneous component analysis (ASCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) has been selected for statistical analysis and variable (metabolite) selection\, respectively. All in all\, different metabolomic workflows have been validated for the assessment of emerging contaminants in model biosystems.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-miriam-carolina-perez-cova/
LOCATION:Aula Magna\, Facultat Química (UB)
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PhD-Thesis-Defence-Miriam.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220719T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220719T130000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162626Z
CREATED:20220701T104409Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162626Z
UID:13875-1658228400-1658235600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Sonia Valdivielso
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Sonia Valdivielso Mijangos\, from the Groundwater and Hydrogeochemistry research group\, will defend her thesis on 19th July at 11h in the Sala de Juntas of the Faculty of Earth Sciences at the Universitat de Barcelona. The PhD defence will be also streamed following this link. \nTitle: Isotopic characterization of precipitation and its relationship with groundwater in the Central Andes \nDirectors: Enric Vázquez-Suñé and Emilio Custodio \nThesis Committee: Albert Soler\, Christian Herrera Lameli\, Josep Mas Pla \nAbstract: \nThe availability of water resources is increasingly limited worldwide. Therefore\, optimal and sustainable management is necessary to ensure a balance between ecosystems and human rights and activities. In the arid Central Andes\, there is a great demand for water for different uses\, including domestic consumption\, intensive mining and\, in some areas\, livestock and emerging ecotourism. These human activities must respect and conserve the lagoon systems of the salt flats\, on which the fauna depend. Understanding the hydrological and hydrogeological functioning of basins is essential for the optimal and sustainable management of water resources. To address this issue\, the objective of this thesis is to advance the knowledge on the isotopic composition of precipitation and its relationship with groundwater in the Central Andes\, particularly in the Salar de Atacama basin (Chile). \nThis thesis contributes to the (1) understanding of the origin of precipitation in the Central Andes and reviews how it varies isotopically (δ18O and δ2H) throughout the Amazon basin and in the Central Andes between 14°S and 28°S\, (2) identification of the factors that control the isotopic composition of precipitation in areas with scarce isotopic and meteorological data and estimation of the meteorological and isotopic variables of precipitation\, (3) characterisation of precipitation and identification of the recharge zone of the Salar de Atacama basin using stable isotopes\, and (4) quantification of the contribution of snowmelt to the recharge of the aquifer of the basin. \nThrough an exhaustive review of the literature\, precipitation in the Central Andes has been characterised. Precipitation occurs mainly during the austral summer. The masses of humidity have different origin: (1) from the North Atlantic Ocean through the Amazon basin\, (2) from the South Atlantic Ocean through the Plate River basin and the Gran Chaco in summer\, and (3) the Pacific Ocean in winter. The processes involved in the isotopic evolution of summer convective precipitation in the Eastern Cordillera are known. However\, there is no consensus on the factors that control the isotopic variation in the Western Cordillera. \nTo identify the processes that determine the precipitation isotopy in the Cordillera Occidental\, a statistical analysis is carried out between geospatial\, meteorological and isotopic variables. The result indicates that temperature is controlled by altitude and latitude\, while relative humidity is controlled by latitude\, and summer precipitation is controlled by altitude and latitude. The stable isotopes of precipitation are controlled by temperature\, altitude\, latitude\, longitude\, and precipitation. Finally\, based on these relationships\, these variables are estimated by independent models throughout the study area and three isotopic models (summer\, winter and annual). \nThe isotopic compositions of the surface water and groundwater indicate the presence of evaporation and that they are similar to each other in each subbasin\, both in the Salar de Atacama and in the Altiplano-Puna. Finally\, the meteoric source of the waters of the Altiplano-Puna basins is more depleted of heavy isotopes than are the waters of the peripheral subbasins of the salar. Therefore\, these results show that there is no hydraulic connection between basins and that there is no significant transfer of water from the Altiplano-Puna to the peripheral aquifer of the Salar de Atacama. \nThis thesis presents a first view of the behavior of snow in the Toconao subbasin (subbasin east of the Salar de Atacama) through physical models. The total average precipitation was 139 mm/year in 2017\, of which a third was in the form of snow. In summer the snow was above 4500 m asl and it melted in 10 days. In winter\, when the temperature is lower\, the snow cover covered much of the basin and slowly melted for a month.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-sonia-valdivielso/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PhD-Thesis-Defence-Sonia-Valdivielso.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220610T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220610T140000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162614Z
CREATED:20220530T142833Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162614Z
UID:13871-1654858800-1654869600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Defensa de tesi per Berta Sala Solà
DESCRIPTION:La estudiant de doctorat Berta Sala Solà\, del grup d’investigació ONHEALTH\, defenderà la seva tesi el 10 de juny a les 11h a la Universitat de Barcelona. El lloc és l’Aula Magna Enric Casassas de la Facultat de Química. \nTítul: Impacte dels residus plàstics en organismes marins: avaluació de la bioacumulació de plastificants i retardants de flama  \nDirectora de la tesi: Ethel Eljarrat \nComité de tesi: Jordi Dachs\, Cristina Romera\, and Carme Alomar \nResum tesi: \nEls organofosfats èsters (OPEs) s’apliquen a una gran varietat de materials tant com a retardants de flama (FRs) i/o com a plastificants. En són un exemple els aparells electrònics\, els teixits\, mobles i els plàstics en si. Cada vegada hi ha una demanda més gran d’aquests compostos ja que són els principals substituts dels FRs èters difenílics polibromats (PBDEs)\, prohibits el 2009 pel Conveni d’Estocolm. \nEn aquesta tesi s’ha volgut avaluar l’impacte d’OPEs i d’altres FRs ja prohibits en el medi ambient i més concretament\, en els organismes marins. Per fer-ho\, s’ha estudiat el comportament espai-temporal dels OPEs analitzant 4 espècies diferents de dofins. Per tal de poder escollir quin teixit dels dofins era el més idoni per poder estudiar la concentració d’OPEs en biota marina\, es va dur a terme un anàlisi d’aquests contaminants en diferents teixits del dofins recol·lectats al Mar d’Alboran. L’estudi va demostrar que el múscul era el més adient i per tant\, és el teixit que es va mostrejar en els altres dofins. Les diferents espècies de dofí s’han mostrejat en 3 zones. L’anàlisi espacial només s’ha realitzat per a les dues zones que disposàvem de mostres d’anys similars: Mar Mediterrani (per la costa catalana) i l’Oceà Índic (per la costa de Sudàfrica). En aquest estudi\, es va poder observar que la concentració d’OPEs a la costa de Sudàfrica era 1\,5 vegades superior a la del Mediterrani occidental. Tot i així\, la diferència de concentracions entre ambdues zones no era significativa. També es va poder estudiar la concentració de PBDEs en les mateixes zones d’estudi\, observant que eren molt més baixes que les trobades pels OPEs. Es va destacar que pel cas de la costa de Sudàfrica els OPEs eren significativament superiors als PBDEs\, fins a dos ordres de magnitud per sobre. Aquest fet\, va fer pensar que la contaminació d’OPEs\, a banda de venir del seu ús com a FRs\, també hi tenia un gran impacte la seva funció com a plastificant ja que es tracta d’una zona molt contaminada pels residus plàstics. Els perfils d’OPEs trobats a les 3 zones ens mostra la semblança que hi ha entre les dues costes del mateix mar\, el Mediterrani\, enfront a la del sud-oest de l’Índic. La tendència temporal dels OPEs\, es va veure només en el Mar Mediterrani\, a on s’observà que la concentració dels OPEs era constant al llarg del temps\, així com les concentracions de plàstics en la mateixa zona. \nTambé s’ha estudiat la bioacumilació i la biomagnificació d’OPEs en organismes marins. En aquest cas\, s’han pogut analitzar per primera vegada mostres de diferents espècies d’organismes marins de diferents nivells tròfics\, com per exemple la medusa i la tortuga babaua\, entre d’altres. Es va poder observar que no existien diferències significatives entre els nivells tròfics estudiats\, indicant una manca de biomagnificació global dels OPEs. Tot i així\, al disposar de mostres de parelles predador-presa es va poder calcular el BMF i veure quins contaminants tendien a biomagnificar-se de manera individual on es va observar que compostos que la bibliografia descriu com que tendeixen a metabolitzar-se\, com per exemple el TNBP\, presenten un potencial de biomagnificació. També es va comprovar que l’aportació dels OPEs als organismes marins pot venir donada tant per la dieta com per la ingesta directa de plàstics. Els resultats de les mostres de lluç ens va permetre calcular la ingesta d’OPEs a través del consum de peix\, observant una nul·la amenaça per a la salut pública d’aquests contaminants per aquesta via d’entrada\, tot i que l’exposició dels humans cap aquests contaminants és més àmplia. \nFinalment\, al disposar de les mostres de rorqual comú i fetus\, es va poder fer el primer estudi de transferència materna d’OPEs i també es va poder mirar la transferència de les SCCPs i el DBDPE.\nEls resultats van demostrar concentracions d’aquests tres compostos en els fetus\, demostrant així la transferència placentària.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-defensa-de-tesi-per-berta-sala-sola/
LOCATION:Aula Magna\, Facultat Química (UB)
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PhD-Thesis-Defence.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220502T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220502T120000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162453Z
CREATED:20220325T081145Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162453Z
UID:13847-1651489200-1651492800@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Nupur Nagar
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Nupur Nagar\, from the Geochemistry & Pollution research group\, will defend her thesis on 2nd May at 11h in Universitat de Vic. The PhD defence will be streamed at this link. \nTitle: Source assessment of the organochlorine pollutants in sediment and fish from Greenland lakes \nDirectors: Joan O. Grimalt and Mireia Bartrons \nThesis Committee: David Huertas\, Pilar Fernández and Àngels Leiva \nAbstract: \nIn the thesis\, three studies were conducted across temporal and spatial gradients to deepen our understanding of OHCs accumulation in the fish and sediments from Greenlandic freshwater lakes. The first chapter aimed to understand the levels of POPs arriving to the high Arctic freshwater lakes in Greenland and how the presence of the living organisms affects their depositional patterns. The role of sea birds as carriers of pollutants over long distances was evaluated. One of the three lakes selected for this purpose had a little auk (Alle alle) bird colony\, and the other two were devoid of these seabirds. We found a strong influence of these seabirds in the transport and deposition of these hydrophobic compounds to remote sites. However\, not all compounds showed the same relative increases. We found a discriminating effect in the seabird accumulation and transport of organohalogen to remote sites. \nThe second chapter aimed to establish a record of OHCs contamination in Greenlandic freshwater lakes sediments. Airports\, military bases\, and research stations were important local sources for DDTs\, HCB\, OCS\, Methoxychlor\, Mirex\, Chlordanes\, and Heptachlors in Greenland freshwater lakes. Populated areas were essential sources for PCBs. The effect of LRAT was evident for HCHs\, HCB\, Chlordanes\, and Heptachlors. Positive longitudinal gradients explained the arrival of HCHs and PBDEs from the Eurasian and Northeastern American continents. The concentrations of most compounds showed a decrease through the years due to the past restrictions. This study is the first to analyse a broad spectrum of OHCs\, including Endosulfans\, Drins\, OCS\, Mirex\, and Methoxychlor\, which were never studied in freshwater lake sediments of Greenland. \nThe third chapter study aimed to determine the range of concentrations of PCBs\, DDTs and PBDEs in the top predator Arctic charr across Greenland freshwater lakes and understand OHCs accumulation and distribution patterns. We found that PCBs and DDTs concentrations in some Arctic charr crossed the toxicity thresholds\, which may be of concern since it is an important component in the local population’s diet. The most critical factors determining PCBs\, PBDEs\, and DDTs accumulation in Arctic charr were mean annual air temperature (indicating LRAT) and anthropogenic impact. The Arctic charr from lakes with higher anthropogenic impact also accumulated higher levels of heavier molecular weight PCBs. Total nitrogen in the lake was also an important factor determining PBDEs bioaccumulation\, indicating a dilution factor of PBDEs in Arctic charr when nitrogen concentrations in the lake were higher. Some Layman metrics were significant predictors for DDTs and PBDEs bioaccumulation\, providing insight into the relevance of biomagnification\, trophic diversity and niche overlap effects for the cycling of these organic compounds across the freshwater food webs.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-nupur-nagar/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Nupur-Nagaru_Thesis-Defence.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220429T103000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220429T123000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162535Z
CREATED:20220428T122713Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162535Z
UID:13858-1651228200-1651235400@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Alícia Martínez
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Alícia Martínez\, from the Global Change and Genomic Biogeochemistry research group\, will defend her thesis on 29th April at 10:30h in Universitat Politècinca de Cataluyna (Escola de Camins\, Edifici C1\, Aula 002) If you want to attend online\, please click on this link. \nTitle: Biodegradation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the surface ocean \nDirectors: Maria Vila-Costa and Benjamí Piña \nThesis Committee: Lluís Banyeras\, Marta Sebastian and Eva Ortega
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-alicia-martinez/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PhD-Thesis-Defence_AliciaMartinez.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220325T170000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220325T170000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162448Z
CREATED:20220311T121255Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162448Z
UID:13846-1648227600-1648227600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Max Giannetta
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Max Giannetta\, from the Groundwater and Hydrogeochemistry research group\, will defend his thesis online on 25th March at 17h.  \nIf you want to attend online\, please contact with doctorat.ciencies.terra@ub.edu up to 48 hours before the defence. \nTitle: A biogeochemical study of an abandoned Pb-Zn mine in the Aran Valley\, Spain; applications of natural attenuation of heavy metals via secondary hydrozincite precipitation \nDirectors: Jordi Cama and Josep M. Soler \nThesis Committee: M. Mercè Corbella\, Cristina Domènech and  Eva Marguí  \nAbstract \nThe Aran Valley in Catalonia (Spain)\, was the site of large-scale Zn\, Pb\, Cu\, Fe\, and Ag mining from the late 19th century until approximately 1950. Although mining activities ceased over 70 years ago\, some of the abandoned mining relics (e.g. tunnels\, processing facilities\, and tailings dumps) exhibit elevated concentrations of metals in the associated water systems\, thus posing a health risk in the neighboring ecosystem. In this study\, the largest underground zinc mine in the Aran Valley (the Victoria Mine) was chosen as a field site to showcase the processes affecting metal mobility in the environment. This mine is composed of 15 km of tunnel galleries\, many of which are flooded today\, and is situated beneath a steep mountain slope. Moreover\, the lowermost gallery exhibits a continuous output of water\, whose composition reflects a flow path through the mine and overlying host rock. \nThree sampling campaigns to the mine (2019\, 2020\, and 2021) provide a spaciotemporal dataset showing the evolution of solute concentrations through the system along a flow path. Rainwater from the upper catchment flows into the host rock above the mine where it dissolves ore materials (primarily Zn (sphalerite) and Fe (pyrite) sulfides with Ni and Cd impurities) causing elevated Zn\, Ni\, and Cd concentrations where these waters enter the mine. From there\, the precipitation of hydrozincite (Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6) along the tunnel gallery where water flows serve as a metal polishing mechanism resulting in significantly diminished metal concentrations (e.g. Zn from 155 to 10 ppm\, Ni from 377 to 32 ppb\, and Cd from 105 to 22 ppb). Hydrozincite has been shown to be product of biomineralization in other sites. However\, by way of DNA sequencing of local communities\, microbial batch experiments\, morphological comparisons to samples known to be a product of biomineralization and geochemical modeling\, it is confirmed that the mineral forms abiotically at the Victoria Mine. \nCharacterization of the solid samples taken from the mine reveals several different morphologies\, Zn zonations in hydrozincite (i.e. purity changes)\, and small amounts of smithsonite (ZnCO3) and calcite (CaCO3). In general\, all solids show layering\, which is a result of intermittent precipitation of distinct solid products. These precipitation patterns are likely a result of changing solute concentrations and precipitation rates. The cause of these changes is hypothesized to be rain events\, which change the water residence time in both the host rock and in the gallery\, thereby altering the water composition. \nSolubility experiments and speciation calculations done using the CrunchFlow code demonstrate that hydrozincite here does not have a constant Keq value\, but rather a range of values (30.0 < log[Keq] <37.68 at 7°C). This behavior is presumed to be a result of precursor effects\, such that amorphous solids with higher solubilities may form before the structured hydrozincite. Notably\, all analyzed solids from the collected mine samples show significant amounts of amorphous material (i.e. broad XRD peaks). \nA CrunchFlow reactive transport model constructed to capture the processes occurring along the flow path through the catchment (i.e. rainwater infiltration and flow through the host rock → mixing of different gallery source (drip) waters → flow of water through the gallery)\, successfully reproduces the measured concentrations. Further\, the model predicts the formation of hydrozincite\, calcite\, and smithsonite while maintained their relative proportions consistent with that of the samples. A sensitivity analyses of the most relevant parameter values (e.g. hydrozincite solubility\, flow velocity\, dispersivity and mineral reactivities) is performed as a way to capture the range of behaviors expected to occur\, and thereby predict future changes to metal mobility. The model confirms that changes to flow velocity\, which would translate to changes in volumetric discharge through the system caused by rain events\, could be the cause of mineral layering and metal zonation in hydrozincite. The model also confirms that the natural metal attenuation process is expected to occur through a wide range of system perturbations. Thus\, the abandoned mine poses little risk to the neighboring ecosystem. \n 
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-max-giannetta/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thesis_giannetta.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220113T113000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220113T133000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162409Z
CREATED:20220113T054459Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162409Z
UID:13833-1642073400-1642080600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Marco Capodiferro
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Marco Capodiferro\, from the Geochemistry and Pollution research group\, will defend his thesis next 13th January at 11:30h.  \nTitle: Dietary exposure to neurotoxic and endocrine disruptive effects: The mercury case \nDirector: Joan Grimalt \nThesis Committee: Marta Schuhmacher\, Barend L. Van Drooge\, Lluis Cardona \n 
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-marco-capodiferro/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thesis_marco_capodiferro.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220113T113000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20220113T133000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162404Z
CREATED:20220110T144908Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162404Z
UID:13832-1642073400-1642080600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Pedro Trechera
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Pedro Trechera\, from the EGAR research group\, will defend his thesis next 13th January at 11:30h.  \nIf you want to attend online\, please click on this link at least 10 minutes in advance. No one will be allowed to enter after 11:30h. \nTitle: Environmental and occupational characterisation of coals and dust from coal mining \nDirectors: Teresa Moreno and Xavier Querol \nThesis Committee: Jesús D. de la Rosa\, José Manuel López Sebastián and Xavier de las Heras \n  \n 
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-pedro-trechera/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thesis_defence_trechera.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210930T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210930T130000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162307Z
CREATED:20210910T125751Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162307Z
UID:13814-1632999600-1633006800@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:Defensa de Tesis de Cristina Carnerero
DESCRIPTION:La estudiante de doctorado Cristina Carnerero\, del grupo de investigación EGAR\, defenderá su tesis el próximo 30 de septiembre a las 11:00h. Si quieres asistir\, por favor\, clica en este enlace. \nTítulo: Dynamics of Ultrafine particles and tropospheric ozone episodes \nDirectores: Xavier Querol y Andrés Alastuey \nTribunal: Begoña Aríñano\, Jorge Pey y María Piñeiro. \nResumen: \n\nLos aerosoles atmosféricos\, en particular las partículas ultrafinas (UFPs por sus siglas en inglés; partículas de menos de 100 nanómetros de diámetro)\, y el ozono troposférico (O3) son contaminantes atmosféricos muy influenciados por reacciones fotoquímicas\, i.e.\, procesos iniciados por la absorción de radiación solar. Concentraciones elevadas de UFPs y O3 en el ambiente tienen importantes efectos adversos en la salud humana e impactos en el clima. \nEn áreas con una alta insolación y dinámicas atmosféricas que favorecen la acumulación de contaminantes debido a recirculaciones verticales de masas de aire\, como en el Mediterráneo occidental y otras regiones del sur de Europa\, a menudo se registran episodios de altas concentraciones de UFPs y O3\, especialmente en primavera y verano. Los episodios de UFPs pueden estar causados por la emisión y acumulación de partículas o por la formación fotoquímica de partículas a partir de precursores gaseosos (formación de nuevas partículas; NPF por sus siglas en inglés). \nEl objetivo de esta tesis es caracterizar la relación entre UFPs y O3 en áreas y períodos con una actividad fotoquímica importante. Concretamente\, esta tesis tiene como objetivos identificar los patrones atmosféricos que causan los episodios\, determinando si estos contaminantes están regidos por los mismos procesos o bien ocurren en paralelo\, así como describir la evolución de las concentraciones de UFPs en los últimos años. \nBasándonos en estos objetivos\, se han analizado datos recopilados durante campañas de medidas intensivas simultáneas a nivel de superficie y en altura\, así como series de datos de medidas continuas a largo plazo. Mediante la combinación de estos datos\, se ha evaluado la estacionalidad y la simultaneidad de los episodios de UFPs y O3\, identificando los factores que contribuyen a ellos y aportando información sobre la influencia de la NPF en las concentraciones de UFPs. \nHemos encontrado que hay dos escenarios que controlan la formación y el transporte de UFPs y O3: la recirculación vertical de masas de aire y la ventilación. El acontecimiento de uno u otro escenario viene determinado por las condiciones meteorológicas a escala sinóptica\, mientras que la magnitud de las concentraciones viene dada por la disponibilidad de precursores y las condiciones atmosféricas y orográficas locales. Nuestros resultados indican que los episodios agudos de UFPs están indudablemente vinculados con los episodios de O3. Aun así\, los episodios pueden ser simultáneos en el mismo día o no serlo. Un episodio de O3 parece ser siempre simultáneo con un episodio de UFPs causado por acumulación de partículas primarias y secundarias durante períodos de recirculación. Sin embargo\, altas concentraciones de UFPs causadas por NPF tienen lugar principalmente con concentraciones relativamente bajas (pero altas en valor absoluto) de O3 durante períodos de ventilación. \nCuando se considera el promedio de las concentraciones anuales de UFPs en áreas urbanas\, las emisiones primarias del tráfico tienen una mayor contribución al número total de partículas que la NPF. No obstante\, en días con episodios de NPF\, la contribución de NPF al número total de UFPs puede ser mayor que la de las emisiones primarias. \nAunque en la mayoría de días no se detectan episodios de NPF\, el número de días con NPF está incrementando\, probablemente debido a una tendencia a la baja en los últimos años de las emisiones atmosféricas antrópicas\, que han causado una disminución en los sumideros de condensación y coagulación. En consecuencia\, la contribución de la NPF al número de UFPs también va en aumento. La concentración total de UFPs puede aumentar o disminuir\, dependiendo de las condiciones locales y las emisiones de precursores. En áreas urbanas\, la disminución de emisiones antrópicas causa una disminución directa de la concentración de UFPs. En cambio\, en ambientes rurales\, la NPF se hace más favorable\, hasta el punto de aumentar las concentraciones de UFPs. Esto puede ser debido a un incremento de las emisiones biogénicas locales de precursores debido al aumento de temperaturas\, así como a una reducción de los sumideros de partículas debido a una disminución del transporte de emisiones antrópicas. \nLas políticas implementadas en los últimos años con el objetivo de reducir las emisiones antrópicas de contaminantes atmosféricos han tenido un gran impacto en las concentraciones del número de UFPs en ambientes urbanos. Por el contrario\, estas políticas no han tenido un impacto significativo en el fondo regional\, donde la concentración de UFPs ha aumentado. \n 
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/defensa-de-tesis-de-cristina-carnerero/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PhD-Thesis-Defence-Cristina-Carnerero.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210916T150000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210916T170000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162312Z
CREATED:20210913T063917Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162312Z
UID:13815-1631804400-1631811600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Andrea Palacios
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Andrea Palacios\, from the Groundwater and Hydrogeochemistry research group\, will defend her thesis next 16th September at 15:00h. If you want to attend\, please click on this link. \nTitle: Geologically-constrained joint inversion of heads\, tracer and ERT data for process visualization. \nDirectors: Jesús Carrera Ramírez and Juanjo Ledo. \nThesis Committee: Sebastián Olivella\, Frédéric Nguyen\, Majken Looms\, Kamini Singha and Daniel Fernández García \nAbstract \nSeawater intrusion (SWI) consists in the movement of seawater (SW) into freshwater (FW) aquifers\, contaminating drinking water resources. SWI\, along with the parallel reduction of Submarine Groundwater Discharge may lead to ecological impacts beyond the reduction of FW resources. Water salinity is the critical physical property to identify SWI. The salinity contrast between FW () and SW (35g/L) is high enough for salinity and\, therefore\, water electrical conductivity (ECw)\, to be indirectly measured using geophysical techniques such as geophysical logs (e.g. induction) or electrical and electromagnetic methods (e.g. electrical resistivity tomography\, ERT). Although the context of SWI sounds ideal for the use of geophysics\, ERT displays poor resolution in depth.\nWe propose using cross-hole ERT (CHERT) to enhance resolution\, placing the electrodes in depth along the boreholes. We tested it for the first time in a SWI context\, at the Argentona experimental site\, some 40 km NE of Barcelona. Results of the 2-years time-lapse CHERT monitoring showed that the use of CHERT and surface ERT increased the model resolution\, and the bulk EC (ECb) values from CHERT were validated with induction logs from the site. We were able to image the seasonal fluctuations of groundwater flux that cause the SW-FW interface to move seawards during periods of high flux or landwards during periods of low flux; as well as the salinization of the aquifer due to an intense drought in the study area during the monitoring period. Two short-term events were also imaged: a decrease in ECb related to a heavy rain event\, and an increase in ECb in the beach area related to storm surges.\nWe built a hydrogeophysical model to characterize the Argentona site using all available data types. The model couples a density-dependent flow and transport simulator with a geoelectrical solver through a petrophysical relation. This model was calibrated by minimizing the misfit between observed and simulated hydraulic heads\, salt concentrations and apparent ECb. The calibration was done on four time stages: a pseudo steady-state period\, a model warm-up period for the introduction of time-varying boundary conditions\, a calibration period covering the first year of the Argentona site monitoring\, and a validation period covering the second year. The latter was used to assess the prediction capability of the models. The procedure allowed us to update the original conceptual model and demonstrate the importance of even the finest silt-rich layers. Then\, three inverse problems were performed on the updated conceptual model: a) using the traditional point measurements of heads and salinity; b) adding the time variations of heads and the spatial differences of salinity to address common issues of using heads and salinity measurements taken from boreholes in coastal aquifers; and c) adding the apparent ECb from the time-lapse CHERT. We discuss the value of using time variations of heads\, instead of only head absolute values; as well as on the use of spatial differences of salt concentrations. The model calibrated using all types of data (heads\, salinity and ECb) had the best prediction capability and the model was able to reproduce the main events observed during the two years of monitoring of the Argentona site.\nNumerical dispersion prevents the model from simulating FW (0-1 g/L)\, which affects calibration. To tackle this issue\, we propose to use an alternative conversion from water salinity to ECw that corrects for numerical dispersion when computing ECb. The methodology consists in applying and calibrating the error function to reduce salinity in the FW zone\, and increase it in the SW zone. The error function calibration can also change the width of the FW-SW interface. This conversion improved the model prediction capability and led to a set of parameters less affected by numerical dispersion (e.g. estimated petrophysical parameters are within the expected range).
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-andrea-palacios/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thesis_defence_andrea_palacios.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210723T150000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210723T170000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162225Z
CREATED:20210719T053116Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162225Z
UID:13803-1627052400-1627059600@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Jingjing Wang
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Jingjing Wang\, from the Groundwater and Hydrogeochemistry group\, will defend her thesis next 23rd July at 15:00h. If you want to attend\, please click on this link. \nTitle: Multirate mass transfer and biofilm growth modeling in porous media. \nDirectors: Jesús Carrera\, Cristina Valhondo and  Maarten Saaltink. \nThesis Comittee: Jaime Gómez Hernández\, Marco Dentz\, Verónica Morales\, Jean-Raynald de Dreuzy and Paula Felicidad Rodríguez Escales. \nAbstract  \nReactive transport modeling is a methodological tool to study the coupled physical\, chemical and biological processes in Earth system. It is complex not only because of the nature of the equations\, but also because of the effects of the porous medium heterogeneity on reactive transport. This thesis aims to deepen the understanding of reactive transport processes in order to explain the biochemical degradation process in porous media\, with special emphasis on the role of biofilm and its growth.First\, we propose a general and efficient numerical solution of reactive transport in multicontinuum media using Multirate Mass Transfer (MRMT) approach. To overcome the non-linearity of the problem\, induced by non-linear kinetics\, we use the Newton-Raphson method to get the global solution. We solve the system of equations in block form\, which allow us to reduce the unknowns to those of mobile zones and to\, thus improving efficiency. The solution is validated by comparison with analytical solution for linear kinetics. The code is developed in Object-oriented way\, which enables the code reusability and data polymorphism. Second\, we investigate the conditions for chemical localization (i.e.\, the occurrence of reactions that would not be possible in single continuum media). To this end\, we write the multicontinuum transport equations in dimensionless form to find that reactive transport in multicontinuum media is governed by three characteristic times: the distribution of residence times in immobile zones\, and the characteristic reaction and transport times. To study the interplay between these three characteristic times\, we simulate three chemical systems: conservative\, single reaction and sequential reaction. Results demonstrate that reactions driven by species that result from previous reactions will localize in immobile zones whose residence time is comparable to reaction times. Furthermore\, immobile zones with residence times much smaller than those for transport can be lumped together (assuming that very fast reactions are assumed in equilibrium)\, which greatly reduces computations.Third\, we perform simulations of reactive transport incorporating biochemical reactions that not only oxidize organic carbon\, but also produce biomass\, thus causing biofilm growth. Biofilm growth is known to cause clogging (i.e.\, reduction of permeability)\, which has concentrated most research on the topic. But it also causes a significant change in the pore space geometry and connectivity\, which leads to not only an overall increase in mean residence time in immobile regions\, but also on its distribution. As discussed above\, this is critical to (bio)chemical localization\, especially considering that microbial mediated reactions tend to concentrate in biofilms. We propose a model for the evolution of residence time distribution in immobile zones in response to biofilm growth. We test this model by comparison with laboratory experiments extracted from the literature\, where tracer tests have been performed at various stages of growth. Results show that the dynamic MRMT model is capable of reproducing the salient features of these experiments.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-jingjing-wang/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/jingjing_tesis.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210719T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210719T150000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162218Z
CREATED:20210707T054005Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162218Z
UID:13801-1626699600-1626706800@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD Thesis Defence by Tybaud Goyetche
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Tybaud Goyetche from the Groundwater and Hydrogeochemistry group\, will defend his thesis next 19th July at 13:00h. If you want to attend\, please click on this link. \nTitle: Seawater intrusion\, Transition zone dynamics and reactive mixing \nDirectors: Jesús Carrera\, Linda Luquot \nThesis Comittee: Mohsen M. Sherif\, Anna Jurado Elices\, Luis Guarracino\, Gudrun Massmann and Daniel Fernandez Garcia \nAbstract \nFreshwater quality and availability in coastal areas are affected by seawater intrusion into coastal aquifers. While coastal water quality and coastal ecosystems can be significantly affected by pollutants discharged into the sea. \nIn this thesis we investigate: (i) the use of sea level periodic fluctuations (e.g. tides) to characterize coastal aquifers hydrodynamic parameters; (ii) the chemical reactions that occur in the mixing zone between freshwater and seawater; and (iii) the impact of high-frequency fluctuations (e.g. storms) on the mixing zone and chemical reactions. Thus\, the Argentona experimental site allowed us to apply and validate the investigated methods. \nThe results show that thanks to the tidal method we have been able to clarify the technique and make its application easier. In addition\, we make one of the first applications to a real aquifer where we detail the entire process from the acquisition and filtering of head data to finally obtain the hydrodynamic parameters by numerical modeling. This allowed refining the conceptual model and observing the pronounced impact of aquitard on the propagation of inland tidal fluctuations. \nIn addition\, we have investigated the chemical reactions that occur by the mixing between freshwater and saltwater. The results show that coastal aquifers are a fairly complex system with many chemical reactions. We observe the predominance of cationic exchange reactions\, but also quite a few redox reactions using organic matter as electron donors and molecules such as dissolved oxygen\, nitrates\, iron\, or manganese oxides as electron acceptors. We have observed that quite a few reactions associated with the rocks that form the reservoir also occur. But we go beyond identifying them\, we present a method to quantify these reactions\, which allows us to observe the spatial distribution of the reactions. Furthermore\, by quantifying them\, it is possible to estimate the chemical composition of the water that is discharged into the sea. As a result\, nutrients discharge to the sea can be estimated through the quantification of their degradation. \nFinally\, we investigated the impact of an intense rain event over a coastal aquifer and its mixing zone. We acknowledge a freshwater displacement occurs in the direction of the sea caused by the aquifer recharge. But we also observed how the interface is pushed inland during the recovery. These unique conditions can have a significant impact on the annual nutrients balance released to the sea. In fact\, by moving the interface\, the chemical conditions are modified and a significant impact on the chemical reactions is observed.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-tybaud-goyetche/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/2.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210309T113000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210309T143000
DTSTAMP:20261018T162032Z
CREATED:20210303T130821Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T162032Z
UID:13770-1615289400-1615300200@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defence by Inmaculada Fuertes Rodríguez
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Inmaculada Fuertes Rodríguez\, from the Environmental Toxicology group\, will defend her thesis online next 9th March at 11:30h. Those who want to attend the PhD defence will have to send an email to vd.quimica.recerca@ub.edu. \nTitle: Application of omic approaches on the characterization of novel toxicity mechanisms of pollutants using Daphnia magna as model species \nDirectors: Dr. Carlos Barata\, Dr. Demetrio Rauldúa and Dr. Encarnación Moyano Morcillo \nThesis Comittee: Dra. Gemma Fabriàs Domingo\, Dr. Juan Carlos Navarro Tárrega\, Dr. John Kenneth Colbourne \nAbstract: \nEnvironmental toxicology is undergoing a paradigm shift due to the new concerning environmental reality. Nowadays\, there is a need to manage more subtle and chronic effects of single and mixture of chemicals at lower and environmental relevant concentrations and to deal with emerging contaminants (ECs)\, whose harmful effects in ecosystems and toxicity mechanisms are still unknown. In order to address this problem\, and develop strategies for evaluating the toxicity of pollutants with greater environmental relevance\, it is necessary to apply integrative approaches combining tools from different disciplines. Omic technologies\, which allow the holistic measure of effects at low levels of biological organization in high throughput platforms\, have the potential to contribute to the development and application of mechanistic data in designing more efficient and effective testing strategies. Overall\, this thesis aimed to prove the importance of integrating omic and conventional toxicological approaches in order to provide significant information to unravel new toxicity mechanism triggered by ECs on the aquatic environment using Daphnia. magna as model species. The ECs studied included suspected lipid disruptors (i.e. EDCs) and ECs that affect the central nervous system (i.e. neuroactive pharmaceuticals and other chemicals). Different integrative approaches have been developed to assess the toxicity of these compounds by linking effects on reproduction and behavior (individual organism responses)\, gene expression and its subsequent metabolomic (and thus lipidomic) disruption in the aquatic model organisms D. magna. The ability of metabolic disruptive to alter lipid homeostasis and reproductive effects\, as well as the molecular signaling pathways that modulate this disruption have been addressed in chapter 2. Lipidomic effects of neuiro-active drugs at environmental concentrations and the driven molecular mechanisms behind them was studied in Chapter 3. Finally the study of transcriptomic and neurological related metabolites (neurotransmitters) in neuro active pharmaceuticals that affected cognitive behavior in Daphnis were addressed in chapter 4.. The results obtained allowed to link transcriptomic signaling pathways with metabolomics (lipidomic and neurotransmitter profiles) and apical responses (reproduction and behavior)
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-inmaculada-fuertes-rodriguez/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/InmaculadaFuertes.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210212T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210212T140000
DTSTAMP:20261018T161950Z
CREATED:20210211T091833Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T161950Z
UID:13760-1613127600-1613138400@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defence by Pere Colomer Vidal
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Pere Colomer Vidal from the Chemometrics group\, will defend his thesis next 12th February at 11:00h. If you want to attend the online defence\, please click on this link: https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/e49c25f212c646dba84b84ecc7444efd \nTitle: Distribution of perfluoroalkyl substances in the environment \nDirectors: Sílvia Lacorte Bruguera\, Anna Rigol Parera and Chunling Luo \nThesis Comittee: Josep María Bayona\, Kevin C Jones and Francisco Javier Santos Vicente \nAbstract: \nPerfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are a large group of man-made chemicals that are widely used throughout society and found in the environment. These compounds are characterized by perfluorinated carbon chains of varying lengths with hydrophobic properties and containing an external polar and hydrophilic head. In general\, the characteristics of PFASs are based on the length of the perfluorinated carbon chain that they contain. As the number of perfluorinated carbons increases in the molecule\, the water solubility decreases and the better the surfactant properties\, but will be more toxic for the environment due to their bioaccumulation in the organisms. \nThe main purpose of this Doctoral Thesis is to study the distribution and behavior of PFASs in different environmental compartments and to elucidate the interactions among them. In the first study of this Thesis\, seventeen PFASs have been analyzed in the water-sediment-plant system along the Dongzhulong and Xiaoqing Rivers in China. The study area is affected by a fluoropolymer facility that belongs to the Dongyue group and is currently one of the major facilities of polytetrafluorethylene production in China. The second study is aimed to evaluate the environmental occurrence of PFASs in sediments\, soils\, and wildlife in the marine environment surrounding the Chafarinas Islands (South Spain) and the impact on gulls. The third study that composes this Thesis is aimed to evaluate the occurrence and 10-year temporal trend of seventeen PFAS in eggs of two gull species (Larus michahellis and Larus audouinii). These species are used as bioindicators of environmental pollution of Spain. \nThe results of this thesis show that the fate of the PFASs in the environment is explained by their physicochemical properties and the characteristics of the different study matrices. In freshwater systems\, high amounts of PFASs in water and sediments close to the industrial discharge were detected\, and concentrations decreased along the river due to dilution. In the water-sediment system\, the results suggest that long-chain PFASs accumulated in sediment whereas short-chain PFASs remained in water all along the river. When including plants in the system\, PFASs were taken up by plants and remobilized in the different plant compartments\, and the uptake mechanisms differed among plant species. In the marine environment of the Chafarinas Islands\, low levels of PFASs detected in soils\, sediments\, fish\, and mussels reflected that the area is not directly impacted by PFASs. In this Thesis we also have estimated the bioaccumulation potential of PFASs\, using gulls. We have estimated the intake based on fish-diet in gulls from Chafarinas. We observe that the release of PFAOS to the egg is 4.5% of the intake and we provide the basis for using gull eggs as biomonitors. In a final study of this Thesis\, we evaluated the presence of PFASs in four main gull colonies in Spain. When comparing gull colonies\, eggs from the Ebro Delta and Medes Islands\, both located in the North-Eastern Mediterranean Sea\, had a similar distribution of PFASs\, while in Chafarinas and Atlantic Islands these PFASs were present at lower concentration levels and variability. In the Ebro Delta colonies\, concentrations in eggs from L. audouinni were significantly higher than those found in L. michahellis\, suggesting that fish diet influences PFAS bioaccumulation. Overall\, ∑PFAS decreased in the 10-year study period but for individual compounds\, trends were colony-species dependant. \nThis thesis permits to increase the knowledge about the processes that rule the behavior of PFASs in water\, sediment\, soil\, and biota. Also\, this thesis demonstrates the advantage of performing systematic monitoring schemes to determine the presence and fate of PFASs in the environment.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-pere-colomer-vidal/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/PereColomer-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210128T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210128T140000
DTSTAMP:20261018T161940Z
CREATED:20210126T085605Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T161940Z
UID:13756-1611831600-1611842400@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defence by Maria Vittoria Barbieri
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Maria Vittoria Barbieri from Water\, Enviromental and Food Chemistry group (ENFOCHEM)\, will defend her thesis next 28th January at 11:00h. If you want to attend to the online defence\, send an email to vd.quimica.recerca@ub.edu. \nTitle: Pesticides in environment: analysis\, occurrence\, impact and recommendations for their attenuation. \nDirectors: Miren López de Alda\, Cristina Postigo Rebollo and Francisco Javier Santos Vicente. \nThesis Comittee: Ana Maria García Campaña\, Isaac Rodríguez Pereiro and Mercè Granados Juan. \nAbstract: \nThe assessment of pesticide occurrence in different environmental compartments has become a matter of outstanding importance since its effects on exposed organisms may be considered a warning on the potential risk these substances may pose to human health. In this context\, and in the framework of this doctoral thesis\, the presence and fate of 52 pesticides and transformation products were evaluated in surface water\, groundwater\, and sediments from four river basins\, and the associated environmental risk was assessed. In addition\, the performance of a fungi-based bioremediation technique for the removal of pesticides was evaluated. The methods developed are based on the use of advanced extraction techniques such as on-line solid-phase extraction\, pressurized liquid extraction\, and QuEChERS extraction\, and analyte determination with liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The use of an isotope-dilution approach ensured the reliability of the results and the satisfactory performance of the methodologies in terms of accuracy\, precision\, linearity\, sensitivity and matrix effect. The most relevant pesticides detected in agricultural areas (Ebro River Delta\, Ter River) were the herbicides widely used in rice cultivation bentazone\, MCPA and propanil\, while in urban and industrial areas like the lower Llobregat River basin\, the most relevant pesticides were bromoxynil\, diuron\, linuron and terbutryn\, used for both agricultural and non-agricultural purposes. In the sediments of the Llobregat River and the fish samples collected from the Adige River\, most of the pesticides found are currently banned\, which suggests their persistence in the environment. The assessment of the environmental risk highlighted the role of pesticides as relevant stressors in the aquatic environment. The degradation of selected pesticides by the fungus T. versicolor point at this organism as an efficient\, green and economic alternative for pesticide removal during water treatment. Further pesticide pollution attenuation was attempted by contributing to the design of participatory multi-actor events to increase the awareness of farmers and stakeholders on the issue of environmental pollution by pesticides\, involving them in the decision-making processes for the implementation of mitigation measures and best management practices aimed at reducing pesticide release into the environment.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-maria-vittoria-barbieri/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Tamano-correcto-Thumbnail-Eventos-WEB-1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210122T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20210122T140000
DTSTAMP:20261018T161929Z
CREATED:20210114T143141Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T161929Z
UID:13751-1611313200-1611324000@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defense by Rui You
DESCRIPTION:The PhD student Rui You from the Environmental Pollution in Agriculture group (EPA)\, will defend his thesis next 22nd January 2021 at 11:00h. The thesis will be broadcasted livestream through Microsoft Teams on this link. \nTitle: The occurrence of contaminants in crops grown under organic soil amendments and peri-urban soils: phytotoxicity and human health implications \nDirector: Dr. Sergi Díez \nThesis committee: Dr. Ignasi Queralt\, from IDAEA-CSIC (president)\, Dra. Cristina Palet\, from the UAB (secretary) and Dr. Juan Carlos Novoa\, from the University of Vigo (spokesperson) \nAbstract: \nModern agriculture has been continually searching for effective methods to meet the exponentially increasing food demand. Amending soil with fertilizers has been widely adopted\, as it could efficiently and fast supply nutrients to vegetables. Since 2015\, the European Commission has proposed a circular economy plan which encourages the soil amendment with biosolids. Nevertheless\, the presence of a wide range of contaminants\, such as trace elements (TEs)\, organic pollutants\, and emerging pollutants such as antibiotics (ABs) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs)\, has been widely reported in many organic fertilizers. Vegetables can absorb the contaminants from the amended soil\, and further threaten human health. For this reason\, risk assessment of organic fertilizer applications is necessary. \nThe most commonly used organic fertilizers are animal-based waste (manure)\, compost (plant sources or food waste)\, and urban waste (sewage sludge and household waste). Currently\, no study evaluates the plant uptake of TEs and ABs under these three organic fertilizers\, nor research evaluates the impact of repeated organic fertilization. Additionally\, multiple application of sewage sludge might result in the accumulation of Zn and Cu in amended soil\, and their presence would influence uptake of other contaminants. \nTherefore\, in this doctoral thesis\, three aspects related to the contaminants in vegetable under different agriculture activities are addressed: (1) amending soils with different doses of different organic fertilizers\, which aims to assess the impact of organic fertilizers on the occurrence of TEs and ABs in vegetables\, (2) repeated amending soil with organic fertilizers and monitoring the variation of TEs concentrations in vegetables of different productive cycles\, which aims to assess the impact of long-term organic fertilization\, and (3) amending soils with sludge and different amounts of Zn and Cu\, which aims to assess the effect of Zn and Cu on the accumulation of TEs\, ABs\, and ARGs in vegetables. Furthermore\, in every case the risk to human health associated with the consumption of vegetables was evaluated. \nIn peri-urban area\, the agricultural soil may receive the potential pollution from fertilizer\, but also from potential contaminants due to urban activities. Those pollutants would influence the growth and development of vegetables. In this thesis\, a simple and rapid method to assess soil pollution was also developed. Here\, we use two plant growth indexes (seed germination rate and root elongation at the initial stage) for three vegetable seeds to assess soil chemical contamination on proximity agriculture.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defense-by-rui-you/
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Diseno-sin-titulo-2.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20200925T160000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20200925T190000
DTSTAMP:20261018T161739Z
CREATED:20200914T141143Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T161739Z
UID:13714-1601049600-1601060400@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defence by Rubén Francisco Martínez López
DESCRIPTION:The PhD researcher Rubén Francisco Martínez López from the Environmental Toxicology group\, will defend his thesis next 25th September 2020 at 16:00h. \nThesis will be live streamed on this link: https://meet.lync.com/ubarcelona-ub/ncarbo/TM2H4VI6 \nTitle: Integrative analysis of endocrine disruption in zebrafish (Danio rerio) \nDirector: Dr. Benjamin Cayetano Piña Capó and Laia Navarro Martín \nAbstract: \nUnderstanding the mode of action of different pollutants and xenobiotics in human and wildlife is a key step in environmental risk assessment. Omic technologies allow the study of the global status at different biological levels (transcriptome\, metabolome\, lipidome…) from a holistic and integrative point of view. The omic data fusion and integration of the effects at these different levels is an extremely useful method to elucidate the mode of action (MoA) of the pollutants and to propose adverse outcome pathways (AOPs). \nIn this way\, the aim of this thesis is to determine molecular and phenotypical signatures of exposure of several endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) on zebrafish (Danio rerio) eleutheroembryos\, which constitutes an excellent model for endocrine disruption. \nMorphometric and transcriptomic (RNA-Sequencing) studies were carried out in individuals exposed to bisphenol A (BPA)\, perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and tributyltin (TBT). Further metabolic\, epigenetic (DNA methylation and miRNAs) and lipidomic (thin layer chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography – mass spectrometry) studies were performed only in BPA-exposed individuals. Main effects of BPA included lipid metabolism disruption\, yolk sac malabsorption syndrome and lipid retention (obesogenicity)\, visual system alteration\, and estrogenicity. Some of its effects were long-term persistent and could be mediated by epigenetic mechanisms. PFOS had immunosuppressive and anorexic-like properties\, it disrupted the transcription of genes related to cell adhesion molecules (CAMs)\, and the exposed eleutheroembryos presented muscle-skeletal alterations (scoliosis and kyphosis). Finally\, TBT disrupted the transcription of genes related to steroid and cell cycle metabolism\, and elicited a general developmental delay (diapause-arrest effect) in the exposed individuals. \nPhenotypic observations were related to their transcriptomic alterations and their proposed molecular initiation event (MIE)\, allowing the design of an AOP for each of the studied EDCs. Overall\, this thesis shows the usefulness of transcriptomics and of data integration at different biological levels to discern AOPs and MIE\, therefore contributing to a deeper comprehension of the toxicity and the mode of action of BPA\, PFOS and TBT. We consider that these results can be extrapolated to understand the toxic effects of these compounds in other animals\, including humans.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-ruben-francisco-martinez-lopez/
LOCATION:Sala de Graus (edifici Aulari)\, Facultat de Biologia UB
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/RubenFranciscoMartinez.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20200921T120000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Madrid:20200921T150000
DTSTAMP:20261018T161739Z
CREATED:20200910T141413Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T161739Z
UID:13713-1600689600-1600700400@idaea.csic.es
SUMMARY:PhD thesis defence by Anna Marqueño Bassols
DESCRIPTION:The PhD researcher Anna Marqueño Bassols from the Environmental Toxicology group\, will defend her thesis next 21st September 2020 at 12:00h. \nTitle: New tools for the detection of lipid disruptors and environmental obesogens \nDirector: Dr. Cinta Porte Visa \nAbstract: \nLipidomics is one of the newest omics sciences\, which has proven their utility in medical research for the discovery of biomarkers and altered metabolic pathways related to disease. Its application in environmental sciences is becoming relevant due to the important role of lipids in development\, maintenance\, and reproduction of metazoans. At the cellular level\, lipids are involved in energy storage\, signaling\, and exhibit structural functions. Organisms contain thousands of different lipid species with rather similar structures. The latest advances in mass spectrometry have prompted the field of lipidomics\, allowing a better annotation of the lipid species of different biological matrices (cells\, biofluids\, tissues)\, but also the detection of alterations as a response to chemical pollution exposure. \nThree analytical techniques based on high-resolution mass spectrometry have been used for the characterization of the lipid profile of different biological models. The first method\, flow injection analysis coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry represents a powerful tool since\, just in two minutes\, it provides a quick screening of the lipid profile of cellular lipids. The other two methods\, which incorporate ultra-high performance liquid chromatography for the previous separation of the lipids\, have allowed the detection of minority species\, and the application of tandem mass spectrometry together with an untargeted approach for data processing provided a more comprehensive lipid profile\, together with the confirmation of lipid identities. \nThese analytical techniques have been used for the study of the impact of several widespread environmental pollutants on the lipid metabolism of both human and fish cell models\, comprising plastic additives (BPA\, BPF\, BADGE\, BADGE·H2O\, BADGE·2HCl)\, the obesogenic compound tributyltin\, all-trans retinoic acid\, the synthetic progestin drospirenone and a complex mixture of environmental pollutants (field study). Lipidomics\, together with some toxicological assays and the use of real-time polymerase chain reaction have allowed drawing a more complete scenario of the toxicological effects of the chemicals under study. Overall\, this thesis aims to contribute to the use of lipidomics in environmental research by proposing useful biological models and workflows for the characterization of the mode of action of environmental pollutants with the capability to act as lipid disruptors.
URL:https://idaea.csic.es/event/phd-thesis-defence-by-anna-marqueno-bassols/
LOCATION:Aula Eduard Fontserè\, Facultat de Física i Química (UB)
CATEGORIES:Thesis Defence
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://idaea.csic.es/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/AnnaMarqueno.png
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR