Evaluation of recombinant antigens of Trypanosoma cruzi to diagnose infection in naturally infected dogs from Chaco region, Argentina

Dogs are considered the main mammal reservoir of Trypanosoma cruzi in domiciliary environments. Consequently, accurate detection of T. cruzi infection in canine populations is epidemiologically relevant. Here we analyzed the utility of the T. cruzi recombinant antigens FRA, SAPA, CP1, Ag1 and a SAPA/TSSA VI mixture, in an ELISA format. We used a positive control group of sera obtained from 38 dogs from the Chaco region in Argentina with positive Homogenate-ELISA reaction, all of them also positive by xenodiagnosis and/or PCR. The negative group included 19 dogs from a non-endemic area. Sensitivity, specificity, Area Under the Curve (AUC) of the Receiver-Operating Charactheristic (ROC) curve and Kappa index were obtained in order to compare the diagnostic efficiency of the tests. The SAPA/TSSA VI had the highest performance, with a sensitivity of 94.7% and an AUC ROC of 0.99 that indicates high accuracy. Among individual antigens, SAPA-ELISA yielded the highest sensitivity (86.8%) and AUC ROC (0.96), whereas FRA-ELISA was the least efficient test (sensitivity=36.8%; AUC ROC=0.53). Our results showed that the use of SAPA/TSSA VI in ELISA assays could be a useful tool to study dogs naturally infected with T. cruzi in endemic areas.Fil: Floridia Yapur, Noelia Aldana del Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Sede Regional Orán. Instituto de Investigación de Enfermedades Tropicales; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Escuela de Biología. Cátedra de Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; ArgentinaFil: Vega Benedetti, Ana Florencia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Monje Rumi, Maria Mercedes. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Ragone, Paula Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Lauthier, Juan José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Tomasini, Nicolás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Alberti D'amato, Anahí Maitén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: López Quiroga, Inés Raquel. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Escuela de Biología. Cátedra de Química Biológica; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Sede Regional Orán. Instituto de Investigación de Enfermedades Tropicales; ArgentinaFil: Diosque, Patricio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Patología Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Instituto de Patología Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Marcipar, Iván Sergio. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas. Laboratorio de Tecnología Inmunológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; ArgentinaFil: Nasser, Julio Rubén. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Sede Regional Orán. Instituto de Investigación de Enfermedades Tropicales; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Escuela de Biología. Cátedra de Química Biológica; ArgentinaFil: Cimino, Rubén Oscar. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Sede Regional Orán. Instituto de Investigación de Enfermedades Tropicales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Escuela de Biología. Cátedra de Química Biológica; Argentin

Epidemiology of American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis and Trypanosoma cruzi Infection in the Northwestern Argentina

Background. Endemic areas of tegumentary leishmaniasis (TL) in Salta, Argentina, present some overlap zones with the geographical distribution of Chagas disease, with mixed infection cases being often detected. Objectives. The purpose of this study was to determine the magnitude of Leishmania sp. infection and potential associated risk factors, the serologic prevalence of T. cruzi, and the presence of T. cruzi-Leishmania sp. mixed infection in a region of the northwest of Argentina. Methods. Crosssectional studies were conducted to detect TL prevalence and T. cruzi seroprevalence. A case-control study was conducted to examine leishmaniasis risk factors. Results. Prevalence of TL was 0.17%, seroprevalence of T. cruzi infection was 9.73%, and mixed infection proportion-within the leishmaniasic patients group-was 16.67%. The risk factors associated with TL transmission were sex, age, exposure to bites at work, staying outdoors more than 10 hours/day, bathing in the river, and living with people who had lesions or were infected during the study. Discussion. The endemic pattern of TL seems to involve exposure of patients to vectors in wild as well as peridomestic environment. Cases of T. cruzi infection are apparently due to migration. Therefore, a careful epidemiological surveillance is necessary due to the contraindication of antimonial administration to chagasic patients

The Future of Cities

This report is an initiative of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the science and knowledge service of the European Commission (EC), and supported by the Commission's Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO). It highlights drivers shaping the urban future, identifying both the key challenges cities will have to address and the strengths they can capitalise on to proactively build their desired futures. The main aim of this report is to raise open questions and steer discussions on what the future of cities can, and should be, both within the science and policymaker communities. While addressing mainly European cities, examples from other world regions are also given since many challenges and solutions have a global relevance. The report is particularly novel in two ways. First, it was developed in an inclusive manner – close collaboration with the EC’s Community of Practice on Cities (CoP-CITIES) provided insights from the broader research community and city networks, including individual municipalities, as well as Commission services and international organisations. It was also extensively reviewed by an Editorial Board. Secondly, the report is supported by an online ‘living’ platform which will host future updates, including additional analyses, discussions, case studies, comments and interactive maps that go beyond the scope of the current version of the report. Steered by the JRC, the platform will offer a permanent virtual space to the research, practice and policymaking community for sharing and accumulating knowledge on the future of cities. This report is produced in the framework of the EC Knowledge Centre for Territorial Policies and is part of a wider series of flagship Science for Policy reports by the JRC, investigating future perspectives concerning Artificial Intelligence, the Future of Road Transport, Resilience, Cybersecurity and Fairness Interactive online platform : https://urban.jrc.ec.europa.eu/thefutureofcitiesJRC.B.3-Territorial Developmen

Matrix Optimization of Ultra High Performance Concrete for Improving Strength and Durability

This paper seeks to optimize the mechanical and durability properties of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC). To meet this objective, concrete specimens were manufactured by using 1100 kg/m3 of binder, water/binder ratio 0.20, silica sand and last generation of superplasticizer. Silica fume, metakaolin and two types of nano silica were used for improving the performances of the concrete. Additional mixtures included 13 mm long OL steel fibers. Compressive strength, electrical resistivity, mercury intrusion porosimetry tests, and differential and thermogravimetric thermal analysis were carried out. The binary combination of nano silica and metakaolin, and the ternary combination of nano silica with metakaolin and silica fume, led to the best performances of the UHPC, both mechanical and durable performances

Influencia del uso de metacaolín y el humo de sílice en el desarrollo de la resistencia a compresión del hormigón de altas prestaciones y su relación con la microestructura = Influence of metakaolin and silica fume in the development of compressive strength of high performance concrete and its relationship with the microstructure

Research developed in the last decades has allowed significant advances in the concrete technology, achieving remarkable improvements in its performancemainly related to its microstructure. In order to relate the behaviour under compressive stresses of high performance concrete (HPC) and the changes in its microstructure, an experimental campaign was developed with specimens of dimensions 160x40x40 mm3. A control mixture without additions and a series of mix designs with partial substitution of cement by of silica fume and metakaolin in different proportions were produced. A low water-to-binder ratio of 0.20 was used, which forced the use of a superplasticizer additive based on modified polycarboxylates, which improved the workability of the mixtures. Silica sand with 98% of SiO2 content and an average particle size of 0.75 mm was used. The specimens were subjected to compressive strength tests at 2, 7, 28 and 91 days, and complementary tests of electric resistivity, mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) and differential thermal-thermogravimetric analysis (DTA-TG) at 28 days. The results of the tests showed that the increase in compressive strength with the use of additions was directly related to the reduction in total porosity and the increase in the proportion of total CSH gel / total portlandite, shown by the MIP and DTA-TG tests, respectively. Mixtures with additions showed reductions of the porosity by up to 31.7% compared with the control mixture, while increasing the proportion of CSH gel/ total portlandite by up to 17.1%. The use of small particles of mineral additions significantly increased the electric resistivity of HPC specimens as evidenced in the present study. This is explained by the reduction in the percentage of large capillary pores and the relative increase of small capillaries, which could enhance the durability of the concrete elements.ResumenLa investigación desarrollada en las últimas décadas ha permitido avances significativos en las prestaciones del hormigón, a través de la mejora de su microestructura .En este trabajo se presentan los resultados de una campaña experimental encaminada a mostrar la influencia de la microestructura del hormigón de altas prestaciones (HPC por sus siglas en inglés) en su resistencia a compresión. Se elaboró una mezcla de control sin adiciones y una serie de mezclas con sustituciones parciales del cemento con humo de sílice y metacaolín en diferentes proporciones. Se usó una relación de agua/conglomerante de 0,20, lo que obligó al uso de un aditivo superplastificante basado en policarboxilatos modificados, el cual mejoró la trabajabilidad de las mezclas. Se usó arena de sílice con 98% de contenido de SiO2 y un tamaño de partícula promedio de 0,75 mm. Con ellas se confeccionaron probetas de dimensiones de 160x40x40 mm3.Las muestras se ensayaron a compresión a los 2, 7, 28 y 91 días, y se realizaron ensayos complementarios de resistividad eléctrica, porosimetría de intrusión de mercurio (PIM) y análisis térmico termogravimétrico diferencial (ATD-TG) a los 28 días. Los resultados de las pruebas mostraron que el aumento en la resistencia a la compresión con el uso de adiciones estaba directamente relacionado con la reducción de la porosidad total y el aumento en la proporción de gel C-S-H/portlandita total. Estos aspectos se confirmaron con los ensayos de PIM y ATD-TG. Las mezclas con adiciones mostraron reducciones de la porosidad hasta en un 31,7% en comparación con la mezcla de control, a la vez que incrementaron la relación gel C-S-H/portlandita total hasta en un 17,1%. El uso de pequeñas partículas de adiciones minerales aumentó significativamente la resistividad eléctrica de las muestras de HPC, lo que confirma la reducción del porcentaje de poros capilares grandes conectados y el aumento de capilares pequeños, lo que además de la resistencia a compresión mejora la durabilidad del hormigón

Dinâmicas de grupo orientadas pelas atividades de estudo: desenvolvimento de habilidades e competências na educação profissional

Explicita resultados de pesquisa sobre dinâmicas de grupo e sua contribuição para aquisição de conhecimentos teórico-práticos. Realizamos ações em uma escola pública federal, envolvendo estudantes do terceiro semestre do Curso Técnico em Administração de Empresas. Para coleta de dados, planejamos, implementamos e avaliamos sequência didática centrada em dinâmicas de grupos tematizadas pelos conteúdos curriculares. Utilizaram-se questionários abertos para avaliar se as dinâmicas de grupo poderiam se constituir em atividades de estudo desenvolvimentais. Os resultados sinalizam que dinâmicas de grupo podem se configurar como uma prática pedagógica inovadora para o ensino centrado no desenvolvimento de competências e habilidades. Concluímos que a aprendizagem mediante dinâmicas de grupo pode se efetivar não apenas no plano teórico, mas também integrada à capacidade de atuar tanto em situações conhecidas como nas não previstas, desde que trabalhadas em sintonia com o conteúdo teórico da disciplina, planejada em ações e finalidades a serem alcançadas

Colección Perú Problema, No. 8

UT Librarie

Aspectos sociales de la educación rural en el Perú

"El Instituto de Estudios Peruanos ofrece este volumen como una contribución al esclarecimiento del problema de la educación en el Perú. El tema central gira en torno de algunos aspectos de la educación rural que no han sido analizados hasta hoy. Trata de los efectos concretos y específicos que la educación tiene en el medio rural. Resalta el peso relativo que el contexto social y la educación ejercen en determinar patrones de comportamiento individual. Finalmente, destaca la importancia del sistema de relaciones sociales entre el maestro y alumno en concepto de vehículo de transmisión de valores"–Contracarátula

Índice de processibilidade para tomada de decisão como apoio ao planejamento estratégico

Constant economy changes instigate business thoughts under the gaze of organizational processes. Horizontal organizations characteristics were recognized through an exploratory-qualitative research, and also the process definition and contextualization of the approaches by processes in order to obtain a definition of processibility in management. Posteriorly the Processibility Index proposed by Gonçalves (2000b) was evaluated through logical-deductive analysis,  verifying the non-coverage the main organizational characteristics. New factors were added, complementing the existing ones and proposing a new index. The research achieves futures prospects, because this measurable index is only relevant before a database that makes possible to categorize the value found, and then, through the information generated, guide the best managerial decision tied to the strategic planning.Constantes mudanças da economia instigam pensamentos empresariais sob o olhar dos processos organizacionais. Através de pesquisa exploratório-qualitativa foram reconhecidas as características das organizações horizontais, de processos e suas abordagens, a fim de obter uma definição de processibilidade em gestão. Posteriormente foi avaliado o Índice de Processibilidade (GONÇALVES, 2000b) através de análise lógico-dedutiva, verificando a não abrangência às principais características organizacionais. Foram acrescidos novos fatores, complementando-o e propondo um novo índice. A pesquisa logra perspectivas futuras, pois este índice apenas se faz relevante frente a uma base de dados que categorize o valor encontrado, desta forma, norteando melhores decisões gerenciais.