Influence of Ideational Praxis on the Development of Play and Adaptive Behavior of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Comparative Analysis

[Abstract] Background: Traditionally, assessment of praxis skills in children with ASD has focused on the evaluation of aspects related to the planning and execution of actions. This study aimed to evaluate the ideational abilities of children with ASD and analyze possible relationships with the development of play and adaptive behaviors. Methods: 40 children between 4 to 6 years (TD = 20; ASD = 20) were evaluated with the Test of Ideational Praxis, the Revised Knox Preschool Play Scale, and the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System II. Results: Statistically significant relationships were obtained between ideational praxis and play skills development (r = 0.649; p = 0.01), adaptive leisure behavior (r = 0.338; p = 0.04) and social adaptive behavior (r = 0.319; p = 0.04). Results of multiple linear regression models found a linear relationship between ideational praxis and play development (p = 0.005) and adaptive leisure skills (p = 0.004), but not with social interaction skills (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Objective evaluation with a specific ideational praxis assessment facilitates understanding of the ideational abilities and widens understanding of praxis skills and their impact on play and adaptive behaviors in children with ASD

Genotoxicity by Electromagnetic Fields

Modern life implies a constant exposure of living organisms to many sources of radiation, especially electromagnetic fields (EMFs) generated by our technological devices. The question of whether or not EMFs in the non-ionizing extremely low frequency (ELF) range can induce genotoxic effects is currently a subject of interest. People of industrialized societies are commonly exposed to EMFs and waves in a very broad range of frequencies, including power lines, telecommunications, and domestic and industrial equipment. In this review, we present controversial evidence from our research group and others of genotoxicity induced by ELF-EMFs, since scientific community consider EMF devices produce marginal amounts of energy, which does not justify any DNA alterations, together with conflicting laboratory results and few epidemiological studies. However, in 2002 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) categorized ELF-EMFs as being potential carcinogenic and genotoxic agents to humans. The aim of the present chapter is to discuss the role of ELM-EMFs on human genotoxicity

Predictive Power of a Body Shape Index (ABSI) for Diabetes Mellitus and Arterial Hypertension in Peru: Demographic and Health Survey Analysis - 2020

Introduction: Given the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and hypertension, an indicator of body fat, A Body Shape Index (ABSI), has been considered to have apparent predictive power for these diseases. Objective: To determine the predictive power of the ABSI for DMT2 and hypertension in Peru through the analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey-2020 (ENDES-by its acronym in Spanish-2020). Methods: Cross-sectional analytical study of the ENDES-2020. The variables evaluated were ABSI, body mass index, high abdominal waist, waist-to-height ratio, body roundness index (BRI) and conicity index (COI). Areas under the curves (AUC) together with their 95% confidence interval (95%CI) were used to present each index. Results: A total of 19 984 subjects were studied. Regarding hypertension, the highest AUC was presented by the COI: AUC=0.707 (95%CI 0.694-0.719). While the ABSI obtained the penultimate place: AUC=0.702 (95% CI 0.689-0.715). In case of DM2, the highest ABC was presented by BRI: AUC=0.716 (95%CI 0.689-0.743); while ABSI obtained the second place: AUC=0.687 (95%CI 0.658-0.717). Conclusions: The results demonstrate that ABSI is not a good predictor for hypertension and DMT2 in the Peruvian population. If these findings are confirmed by other studies, its use would not be recommended for these diseases, and other anthropometric indicators that could perform better should be further explored

Predictive power of a body shape index (ABSI) for diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension in Peru: demographic and health survey analysis - 2020

Introduction: Given the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and hypertension, an indicator of body fat, A Body Shape Index (ABSI), has been considered to have apparent predictive power for these diseases.Objective: To determine the predictive power of the ABSI for DMT2 and hypertension in Peru through the analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey-2020 (ENDES-by its acronym in Spanish-2020).Methods: Cross-sectional analytical study of the ENDES-2020. The variables evaluated were ABSI, body mass index, high abdominal waist, waist-to-height ratio, body roundness index (BRI) and conicity index (COI). Areas under the curves (AUC) together with their 95% confidence interval (95%CI) were used to present each index.Results: A total of 19 984 subjects were studied. Regarding hypertension, the highest AUC was presented by the COI: AUC=0.707 (95%CI 0.694-0.719). While the ABSI obtained the penultimate place: AUC=0.702 (95% CI 0.689-0.715). In case of DM2, the highest ABC was presented by BRI: AUC=0.716 (95%CI 0.689-0.743); while ABSI obtained the second place: AUC=0.687 (95%CI 0.658-0.717). Conclusions: The results demonstrate that ABSI is not a good predictor for hypertension and DMT2 in the Peruvian population. If these findings are confirmed by other studies, its use would not be recommended for these diseases, and other anthropometric indicators that could perform better should be further explored.Campus Lima Nort

Phenology, productivity, and chemical characterization of Jatropha curcas L. as tool for selecting non-toxic elite germplasm

A phenological, physical and chemical descriptive study was carried out on six germplasms of Jatropha curcas L. collected from different areas of Mexico. From these six germplasms, elite germplasms that are better adaptable, with high seed, oil and protein yield, and low levels of phorbol esters were identified. The thermal constant (2570 ± 9) and seed weight (0.695 ± 0.065 g) were similar in all the six germplasms. The average plant height was 1.47 ± 0.25 m after one year of evaluation. Variation in the number of inflorescences (0 to 22) and seed yield (27.35 ± 22.65 g) per plant, and fruit per cluster (2.9 ± 2.2) was considerable. Kernel oil and crude protein contents were 57 ± 3% and 26 ± 2%, respectively. Germplasms India and Isla (Veracruz) had the highest levels of phorbol esters (5.982 and 2.070 mg·g-1, respectively). The reproductive stage and phorbol esters content were critical in selecting elite germplasms. Based on our results, we were able to select three elite germplasms.Key words: Jatropha curcas, elite germplasm, accumulated degree days (ADD), yield, oil, protein, phorbol esters

Enseñanza de la Matemática aplicada al Diseño. Concepción matemática del espacio: El Workshop como experiencia de formación alternativa.

Ponencia presentada en el 8º Encuentro de Docentes de Matemática en Carreras de Diseño de Universidades Nacionales del MERCOSUR. San Juan, 2013Dentro del marco de la Cátedra de Matemática IA y II de la Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño FAUD de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba UNC se genera una propuesta sobre la base de la idea de trabajar en pos de una flexibilización del Plan de Estudios, a través de la generación de espacios de formación, alternativos y optativos, como modo de enriquecer y diversificar la formación de grado del estudiante de Arquitectura. Dicha flexibilización es un aspecto emergente y recurrente en la agenda de temas trabajados en los últimos Cursos de Posgrado Docente y Jornadas organizados desde la Escuela de Graduados y la Secretaría Académica de la FAUD. La selección del formato Workshop se fundamenta en la esencia misma de esta modalidad, que pone el acento en el hacer experimentando como manera de conocer, comprender y apropiarse de contenidos matemáticos ligados a la Arquitectura. Estos últimos, son resignificados bajo una experiencia concreta, de construcción individual en un contexto social de aprendizaje, en el que se desdibujan las fronteras de los campos de conocimientos que dan paso a una concepción arquitectónica del espacio. En el contexto de la Semana de Acciones implementadas desde Secretaría Académica de la FAUD como un espacio tiempo para desarrollar propuestas alternativas desde las distintas Cátedras, en septiembre de 2012, la Cátedra de Matemática IA y II llevó a cabo un Workshop denominado POLÍGONOS Y POLIEDROS aplicados a la ARQUITECTURA. Del PLANO al ESPACIO. El mismo estuvo destinado a alumnos de los niveles I, II y III de la Carrera de Arquitectura, con el afán de despertar en ellos la curiosidad y el interés hacia la utilización de los cuerpos poliédricos en el proceso de diseño. Esta experiencia metodológica se vertebró sobre los cinco sólidos geométricos fundamentales y regulares llamados sólidos platónicos, concebidos como generadores de modelos espaciales habitables. El Workshop se realizó durante una jornada de cuatro horas, y persiguió los siguientes objetivos Propiciar la comprensión de los poliedros como entidades tridimensionales a través de su maquetización, su representación en el plano y el reconocimiento de formas simples combinadas según sus características y propiedades geométricas. Entender la adaptabilidad de las estructuras poliédricas al diseño, valorando los aspectos funcionales, formales y tecnológicos, adecuando la propuesta al nivel de cursado de los alumnos. Construir un modelo espacial, asimilable a un espacio arquitectónico, explorando distintas alternativas hasta encontrar la más adecuada a sus fines. Visualizar al hombre como destinatario natural del espacio arquitectónico, apoyándose en el correcto uso de la escala y las proporciones, en las dos y las tres dimensiones. Socializar la experiencia a través de una muestra de trabajos y conclusiones, tanto en relación a la importancia de la Matemática en las diferentes fases del proceso de diseño, como a la valoración del Workshop como un espacio de fomación alternativo y enriquecedor para enseñar y aprender Matemática en la carrera de Arquitectura. La producción de los estudiantes superó las expectativas. Sus valiosas opiniones junto a la experiencia como docentes nos motivan a considerar e incorporar esta modalidad en algunas instancias de formación en nuestra asignatura. Sin dudas, este formato facilita el manejo de las múltiples variables que enriquecen el hecho arquitectónico creativo en un ámbito de trabajo ameno y colaborativo.Fil: Lanzillotto, Clarisa. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Ávila, María Cristina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Agosto, Miriam. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Farías, Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Heredia, Mirta. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Crivello, Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Almada, Pablo. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Chaile, Silvio A. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Gnavi, Gerardo. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Torres, Alejandro. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaFil: Borello, Natalia. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño; ArgentinaMatemática Aplicad

Influence of processing on the volatile profile of strawberry spreads made with isomaltulose

[EN] A new strawberry spread formulated with fructose and isomaltulose (replacing sucrose partially or totally) and a high percentage of fruit was developed in line with the new trend of healthier products. This work studies the influence of some process variables (percentage of sugar, pectin and citric acid, and time of thermal treatment) on the volatile profile of these spreads with different formulations. The ripeness of the raw strawberries influences the concentrations of some of the compounds in the spreads, such as isobutyl acetate, butyl butyrate, 3-hexen-1-yl acetate or propan-2-ol. The process conditions have an important effect on the volatile profiles. Most of the esters and alcohols decreased whereas 13 new compounds appear, mostly furans (furfural, 2-acetylfurane, 5-methyl furfural, mesifurane) and aldehydes (octanal, nonanal, decanal and benzaldeyhde). In general, the spreads formulated with sucrose-isomaltulose that contained higher levels of pectin and citric acid gave better results in the preservation of the original aromatic compounds in raw strawberries.Authors would like to thank Direccion General de Investigacion del Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnologia (AGL2008-01745/ALI) as well as the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia for the financial support given to this investigation.Peinado Pardo, I.; Rosa Barbosa, EM.; Heredia Gutiérrez, AB.; Escriche Roberto, MI.; Andrés Grau, AM. (2013). Influence of processing on the volatile profile of strawberry spreads made with isomaltulose. Food Chemistry. 138(1):621-629. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2012.09.104S621629138

The steroid-hormone ecdysone coordinates parallel pupariation neuromotor and morphogenetic subprograms via epidermis-to-neuron Dilp8-Lgr3 signal induction

Funding Information: We thank Drs. Carlos Ribeiro, Christen Mirth, Elio Sucena, Filip Port, Frank Schnorrer, Julien Colombani, Maria Dominguez, Maria Luisa Vasconcelos, Pierre Leopold, Simon Bullock, Rita Teodoro, Gerald Rubin, Melissa Harrison, Kate O’Connor-Giles, Jill Wildonger, Mariana Melani, Pablo Wappner, and Christian Wegener for fly stocks and reagents. We thank Ryohei Yagi and Konrad Basler for the LHV2 plasmid and Brain McCabe for the mhc-Gateway destination plasmid. We thank Carlos Ribeiro and Dennis Goldschmidt for help in designing and constructing one of the pupariation arenas and Mariana Melani, Pablo Wappner, Arash Bashirullah, and Filip Port for sharing resources and unpublished data. We thank Arash Bashirullah, Fillip Port, and Carlos Ribeiro for discussions and/or comments on the manuscript, and Jim Truman for discussions on Fraenkel’s pupariation factors. Stocks obtained from the Bloomington Drosophila Stock Center (NIH P40OD018537) were used in this study. Work in the Integrative Biomedicine Laboratory was supported by the European Commission FP7 (PCIG13-GA-2013-618847), by the FCT (IF/00022/2012; Congento LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-022170, cofinanced by FCT/Lisboa2020; UID/Multi/04462/2019; PTDC/BEXBCM/1370/2014; PTDC/MED-NEU/30753/2017; PTDC/BIA-BID/31071/2017; FCT SFRH/BPD/94112/ 2013; SFRH/BD/94931/2013), the MIT Portugal Program (MIT-EXPL/BIO/0097/2017), and FAPESP (16/09659-3, 16/10342-4, and 17/17904-0). AG is a CONICET researcher, YV holds a CONICET postdoctoral fellowship and FPS and MJD hold a PhD fellowship from CONICET. Work in the Garelli lab was supported by ANPCyT (Agencia Nacional para la Promoción de la Ciencia y la Tecnología, PICT 2014-2900 and PICT 2017-0254) and CONICET (PIP11220150100182CO). Publisher Copyright: © 2021, The Author(s). Copyright: Copyright 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.Innate behaviors consist of a succession of genetically-hardwired motor and physiological subprograms that can be coupled to drastic morphogenetic changes. How these integrative responses are orchestrated is not completely understood. Here, we provide insight into these mechanisms by studying pupariation, a multi-step innate behavior of Drosophila larvae that is critical for survival during metamorphosis. We find that the steroid-hormone ecdysone triggers parallel pupariation neuromotor and morphogenetic subprograms, which include the induction of the relaxin-peptide hormone, Dilp8, in the epidermis. Dilp8 acts on six Lgr3-positive thoracic interneurons to couple both subprograms in time and to instruct neuromotor subprogram switching during behavior. Our work reveals that interorgan feedback gates progression between subunits of an innate behavior and points to an ancestral neuromodulatory function of relaxin signaling.publishersversionpublishe

Coordinación y evaluación de la implantación del primer curso de Ingeniería Robótica

En el curso 2015-16 se ha implantado la nueva titulación de grado en Ingeniería Robótica en la Universidad de Alicante. Este grado es el primero en el territorio nacional de estas características. El perfil de los estudiantes es una combinación entre un ingeniero industrial y uno informático, perfil muy demandado por las empresas. La principal cuestión que nos planteamos en este estudio es la implantación del primer curso de este novedoso grado. Al ser el primer grado de estas características, es necesario una vigilancia de los contenidos para su adecuación al perfil del estudiante. Por otro lado, se hace necesario una coordinación de los contenidos de las asignaturas para evitar posibles solapes o carencias