Design of a vaccine against dengue and Zika viruses based on a mimotope of the envelope dimer epitope

Zika and dengue viruses are members of the Flavivirus genus that cause mild fever, rash and general body pain; but can cause severe reactions, as hemorrhages (dengue virus), congenital syndrome (Zika virus), or even death. Because of the structural similarity between these viruses, some antibodies generated after an infection can cross-react with different members of the flavivirus family. After a secondary infection, the cross-reactive antibodies can lead to more severe forms of the disease, through a mechanism named antibody-dependent enhancement of infection (ADE). Broadly neutralizing antibodies are antibodies that neutralize both, dengue and Zika viruses; and it has been demonstrated that they do not induce ADE. These antibodies are directed to a discontinuous quaternary epitope named the Envelope Dimer Epitope (EDE)1, located in the envelope (E) protein. To obtain the EDE, it is necessary to express the complete E protein, which contains other epitopes that induce ADE. This study aims to generate a peptide that emulates the EDE epitope structure (mimotope) in order to be used as a dual vaccine against dengue and Zika viruses; without causing ADE. Please click Download on the upper right corner to see the full abstract

An Active Learning Didactic Proposal with Human-Computer Interaction in Engineering Education: A Direct Current Motor Case Study

Engineering education requires learning strategies to engage students and improve the development of disciplinary and transversal competencies. Additionally, as economic resources are generally limited, it is sought to avoid investing large sums of money in software and hardware, as well as in fitting out laboratories. This work presents a didactic proposal within the framework of active and collaborative learning that includes the flipped classroom technique to be applied in the curriculum of undergraduate engineering programs and inside a massive flexible digital master class. The activity is the mathematical modeling, simulation, and control system of a direct current motor where simulation work is carried out in open license computational packages. Students understand the physical phenomena involved in the motor’s modeling and the input–output variables’ relations. Moreover, an analogy between an electromechanical and a pure electrical model is carried out, where the relevant variables respond in an agile and reliable manner. To validate the modeling, the differential equations are solved by applying numerical methods, and tested for control purposes. The activity has been validated with a rule-based system applied to a Likert scale survey data. This type of human–computer interaction, in the context of active learning, could engage students and motivate them to develop competencies that are highly appreciated by industry practitioners. View Full-Tex

A Transcriptome Atlas of Physcomitrella patens Provides Insights into the Evolution and Development of Land Plants

Post-print version of the article.Identifying the genetic mechanisms that underpin the evolution of new organ and tissue systems is an aim of evolutionary developmental biology. Comparative functional genetic studies between angiosperms and bryophytes can define those genetic changes that were responsible for developmental innovations. Here, we report the generation of a transcriptome atlas covering most phases in the life cycle of the model bryophyte Physcomitrella patens, including detailed sporophyte developmental progression. We identified a comprehensive set of sporophyte-specific transcription factors, and found that many of these genes have homologs in angiosperms that function in developmental processes such as flowering and shoot branching. Deletion of the PpTCP5 transcription factor results in development of supernumerary sporangia attached to a single seta, suggesting that it negatively regulates branching in the moss sporophyte. Given that TCP genes repress branching in angiosperms, we suggest that this activity is ancient. Finally, comparison of P. patens and Arabidopsis thaliana transcriptomes led us to the identification of a conserved core of transcription factors expressed in tip-growing cells. We identified modifications in the expression patterns of these genes that could account for developmental differences between P. patens tip-growing cells and A. thaliana pollen tubes and root hairs.ERA-NET: (2nd call ERA-NET for Coordinating Plant Sciences); Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia

Experimental evidence of charged domain walls in lead-free ferroelectric ceramics: Light-driven nanodomain switching

The control of ferroelectric domain walls at the nanometric level leads to novel interfacial properties and functionalities. In particular, the comprehension of charged domain walls, CDWs, lies at the frontier of future nanoelectronic research. Whereas many of the effects have been demonstrated for ideal archetypes, such as single crystals, and/or thin films, a similar control of CDWs on polycrystalline ferroelectrics has not been achieved. Here, we unambiguously show the presence of charged domain walls on a lead-free (K,Na)NbO 3 polycrystalline system. The appearance of CDWs is observed in situ by confocal Raman microscopy and second harmonic generation microscopy. CDWs produce an internal strain gradient within each domain. Specifically, the anisotropic strain develops a crucial piece in the ferroelectric domain switching due to the coupling between the polarization of light and the ferroelectric polarization of the nanodomain in the (K,Na)NbO 3 ceramic. This effect leads to the tuning of the ferroelectric domain switching by means of the light polarization angle. Our results will help to understand the relevance of charged domain walls on the ferroelectric domain switching process and may facilitate the development of domain wall nanoelectronics by remote light control utilizing polycrystalline ferroelectricsThis work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) under the projects MAT201348009-C4-1-P, MAT2013-43301-R and MAT2016-76106-R, the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) under the project NANOMIND CSIC 201560E068 and the Comunidad de Madrid under the grant S2013/MIT-274

Job satisfaction of public workers in Northern Peru during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the job satisfaction of public workers in the provincial municipalities of the Tumbes region (Peru).Method:The method used was a descriptive, non-experimental cross-sectional design. The sample consisted of 319 male and female workers from the 3 provincial municipalities. A sociodemographic questionnaire and the Job Satisfaction Questionnaire were used as data collection instruments. Results: The results showed that only 10% of the participants had high job satisfaction. Within the dimensions, the majority showed low satisfaction (67%) with the remuneration received. No significant differences were found between men and women with respect to job satisfaction, and those with permanent employment status had lower levels than those who work on a temporary basis. Conclusions: It is concluded that most of the personnel working in the provincial municipalities of the Tumbes region have low levels ofjob satisfaction, so it is important to develop programs aimed at strengthening the bond and favorable attitude of workers with the institution where they work

Rare three-body decay t -> c h gamma in the standard model and the two-Higgs doublet model

A complete calculation of the rare three-body decay t --> c h gamma is presented in the framework of the standard model. In the unitary gauge, such a calculation involves about 20 Feynman diagrams. We also calculate this decay in the general two-Higgs doublet model (model III), in which it arises at the tree-level. While in the standard model the decay t --> c h gamma is extremely suppressed, with a branching fraction of the order of $10^{-15}$ for a Higgs boson mass of the order of 115 GeV, in the model III it may have a branching ratio up to $10^{-5}$. We also discuss the crossed decay h --> b \bar{s} gamma.Comment: Updated to match published versio

Producción científica Iberoamericana sobre TIC en el contexto educativo

ICT in the educational context can be seen as information transmitting resources that link the teacher and the student in the improvement of teaching-learning adapted to the needs and characteristics of each subject. From this perspective, we seek to describe the state of Iberoamerican scientific production on the inclusion of ICT in the educational discipline in the period 2010 to 2020, based on a retrospective descriptive analysis of publications collected in journals indexed in Scopus. A total of n=1976 contributions were collected. It was found that production increased by 8.51%. Spain is the Iberoamerican country that contributes with the highest scientific production, authors with Iberoamerican affiliation usually publish through conference articles, highlighting ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. In front of an analysis of maturity of knowledge we are facing a development of scientific production in process of growth.Las TIC en el contexto educativo pueden verse conocidos como recursos transmisores de información que vincula al docente y al estudiante en la mejora de la enseñanza - aprendizaje adaptado a las necesidades y características de cada sujeto. Desde esta perspectiva se busca describir el estado de la producción científica Iberoamericana sobre la inclusión de las TIC en la disciplina educativa en el periodo 2010 al 2020. El estudio se basa en el análisis descriptivo retrospectivo de publicaciones recopiladas en revistas indizadas en Scopus. Se recolectó un total de n=1976 contribuciones. Se encontró que la producción aumentó en un 8,51%. España es el país Iberoamericano que contribuye con mayor producción científica, los autores con afiliación Iberoamericana suelen publicar a través de Artículos de conferencia, destacando ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. Frente a un análisis de madurez de conocimiento estamos ante un desarrollo de producción científica en proceso de crecimiento

Producción científica Iberoamericana sobre TIC en el contexto educativo

ICT in the educational context can be seen as information transmitting resources that link the teacher and the student in the improvement of teaching-learning adapted to the needs and characteristics of each subject. From this perspective, we seek to describe the state of Iberoamerican scientific production on the inclusion of ICT in the educational discipline in the period 2010 to 2020, based on a retrospective descriptive analysis of publications collected in journals indexed in Scopus. A total of n=1976 contributions were collected. It was found that production increased by 8.51%. Spain is the Iberoamerican country that contributes with the highest scientific production, authors with Iberoamerican affiliation usually publish through conference articles, highlighting ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. In front of an analysis of maturity of knowledge we are facing a development of scientific production in process of growth.Las TIC en el contexto educativo pueden verse conocidos como recursos transmisores de información que vincula al docente y al estudiante en la mejora de la enseñanza - aprendizaje adaptado a las necesidades y características de cada sujeto. Desde esta perspectiva se busca describir el estado de la producción científica Iberoamericana sobre la inclusión de las TIC en la disciplina educativa en el periodo 2010 al 2020. El estudio se basa en el análisis descriptivo retrospectivo de publicaciones recopiladas en revistas indizadas en Scopus. Se recolectó un total de n=1976 contribuciones. Se encontró que la producción aumentó en un 8,51%. España es el país Iberoamericano que contribuye con mayor producción científica, los autores con afiliación Iberoamericana suelen publicar a través de Artículos de conferencia, destacando ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. Frente a un análisis de madurez de conocimiento estamos ante un desarrollo de producción científica en proceso de crecimiento

VAMOS: a Pathfinder for the HAWC Gamma-Ray Observatory

VAMOS was a prototype detector built in 2011 at an altitude of 4100m a.s.l. in the state of Puebla, Mexico. The aim of VAMOS was to finalize the design, construction techniques and data acquisition system of the HAWC observatory. HAWC is an air-shower array currently under construction at the same site of VAMOS with the purpose to study the TeV sky. The VAMOS setup included six water Cherenkov detectors and two different data acquisition systems. It was in operation between October 2011 and May 2012 with an average live time of 30%. Besides the scientific verification purposes, the eight months of data were used to obtain the results presented in this paper: the detector response to the Forbush decrease of March 2012, and the analysis of possible emission, at energies above 30 GeV, for long gamma-ray bursts GRB111016B and GRB120328B.Comment: Accepted for pubblication in Astroparticle Physics Journal (20 pages, 10 figures). Corresponding authors: A.Marinelli and D.Zaboro