Influencia de la sociedad del conocimiento en la enseñanza de las ciencias experimentales. Un caso de estudio: la genética y la biología molecular

In the last years, there has been a quick increase in the development of genetic technologies with important economic, ethical or social implications which are provoking many questions of great relevance. Young students are immersed in news on Genetics and Molecular Biology, subjects that will be more and more common, and they will be demanded to makesubstantiated decisions. Nevertheless, generally, little is known about what young people know or think about these issues. The great social development that the Genetics is acquiring, their wide media coverage, the incorporation of this matter in the curriculum of secondary education, the difficulties found in the learning of genetic, are some of the reasons that make necessary a deeper investigation through a didactic perspective. In this work, aspects related to the education of the genetics have been analyzed from both the point of view of the formal education and from the informal one.En los últimos años ha habido un rápido incremento en el desarrollo de la Biología Molecular, lo que ha tenido implicaciones económicas, éticas y sociales, lo que está provocando cambios en la sociedad y generando nuevas cuestiones de relevancia. La juventud está inmersa en noticias relacionadas con Genética y Biología Molecular, temas cada vez más comunes y cotidianos, y deberán de tener un criterio para poder opinar al respecto. Sin embargo, en general, poco se sabe sobre lo que los jóvenes conocen u opinan sobre estos temas. El gran desarrollo social de la Biología Molecular, su amplia cobertura mediática, la incorporación de esta materia al currículo oficial o las dificultades encontradas en su aprendizaje, son algunasde las razones que hacen necesario el desarrollo de investigaciones desde el punto de vista didáctico. En este trabajo se analizan aspectos relacionados con la enseñanza formal y no formal de este tema

Evaluation of the creation of a web page with six open educational resources as a tool to enhance the learning of the English Language on Higher Education

Los Recursos Educativos abiertos, actualmente, ocupan un papel muy importante en el proceso de la Enseñanza del idioma inglés. Son herramientas gratuitas que se le ofrecen a los docentes para una mejor calidad en sus clases y para que los estudiantes tengan un mayor aprovechamiento y aprendan de una manera más sencilla y mediática. Este mundo digital en el que se vive actualmente, con estudiantes conocidos como nativos digitales, exige a los docentes (inmigrantes digitales) un esfuerzo cada vez mayor e implica una capacitación constante para los requerimientos actuales. El presente artículo tiene como objetivo presentar un proyecto de investigación acerca de la creación y evaluación de una página Web que cuenta con seis recursos educativos abiertos, todos ellos enfocados en ser una herramienta importante para la enseñanza del idioma inglés. En dicho proyecto de investigación, para realizar la evaluación del proyecto fue utilizado el método cualitativo y el método de casos, y se realizó mediante el uso de distintos instrumentos, principalmente encuestas, aplicadas a docentes del idioma inglés de 4 universidades de los países de México y Colombia y expertos relacionados al campo de la educación a nivel superior y de la informática que laboran en dichas universidades. Como conclusión del proyecto, de acuerdo a los instrumentos utilizados, estos arrojaron resultados positivos en la evaluación de la página web, en la mayoría de las ocasiones los recursos con los que contaba la página favorecieron en la enseñanza del idioma en los docentes, y como consecuencia, en el aprendizaje de los estudiantesOpen Educational Resources nowadays have an important role in the process of Teaching as a second language. They are free tools offered for teachers to increase the classes´ quality and for students to have academic progress in order they learn in an easy and fun way. The digital world in which we live now, with students known as digital natives, demands to the teachers (digital immigrants) an important effort and involves a constant training for the current requirements. The objective of this article is to present a research project about the creation and evaluation of a Web Page that has six open educational resources; all of them focused on being an important instrument for the English language teaching. To evaluate the research project it was used the qualitative method and the case study method, through the use of different instruments, mainly surveys, for teachers of the English language from four different universities of Mexico and Colombia and experts related to the field of higher education and in computer science that work in those universities. As a conclusion, through the instruments used to evaluate the web page, there were found positive results and in most of the cases the resources that the web page had contributed in the English language teaching process, and consequently, in the learning of the students

How can destinations get engagement on Instagram? Artificial Intelligence as a tool for photo analysis

[EN] What type of content should be published on Instagram to get more engagement? This article highlights the different characteristics that the images of tourists show on Instagram with the most engagement, that is likes and comments. Understanding the behavior in a destination helps tourism managers in marketing strategies. Based on the stimulus-organism-response model, a content analysis of 49,540 photographs shared by tourists that received 3,734,384 likes and 133,497 comments is carried out. By combining the content analysis with Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric tests, the results show that the different characteristics found in the images imply different amounts between comments and likes, demonstrating that the behavior of users on Instagram is influenced by the different attributes of the images. Specifically, images that feature people get more engagement than destination-focused ones. Additionally, scenes such as gastronomy and nature get less engagement than scenes such as old and new heritage, outdoors, and entertainment. Specifically, photos with people get greater rate of comments than likes, and if the format is selfie, they also get more comments. The implications of this research directly affect destination managers, offering clues about the content generated by tourists that produces the most engagement, thus attracting potential tourists and Instagram users.Blanco-Moreno, S.; González-Fernández, AM.; Muñoz-Gallego, PA. (2023). How can destinations get engagement on Instagram? Artificial Intelligence as a tool for photo analysis. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 123-124. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/20171412312

Beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids in the proteome of high-density lipoprotein proteome

BACKGROUND: Omega-3 poly-unsaturated fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs) have demonstrated to be beneficial in the prevention of cardiovascular disease, however, the mechanisms by which they perform their cardiovascular protection have not been clarified. Intriguingly, some of these protective effects have also been linked to HDL. The hypothesis of this study was that ω-3 PUFAs could modify the protein cargo of HDL particle in a triglyceride non-dependent mode. The objective of the study was to compare the proteome of HDL before and after ω-3 PUFAs supplemented diet. METHODS: A comparative proteomic analysis in 6 smoker subjects HDL before and after a 5 weeks ω-3 PUFAs enriched diet has been performed. RESULTS: Among the altered proteins, clusterin, paraoxonase, and apoAI were found to increase, while fibronectin, α-1-antitrypsin, complement C1r subcomponent and complement factor H decreased after diet supplementation with ω-3 PUFAs. Immunodetection assays confirmed these results. The up-regulated proteins are related to anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-atherosclerotic properties of HDL, while the down-regulated proteins are related to regulation of complement activation and acute phase response. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the low number of subjects included in the study, our findings demonstrate that ω-3 PUFAs supplementation modifies lipoprotein containing apoAI (LpAI) proteome and suggest that these protein changes improve the functionality of the particle

Hazard characterization of graphene nanomaterials in the frame of their food risk assessment: A review

Different applications have been suggested for graphene nanomaterials (GFNs) in the food and feed chain. However, it is necessary to perform a risk assessment before they become market-ready, and when consumer exposure is demonstrated. For this purpose, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a guidance that has been recently updated. In this sense, the aim of this study is to identify and characterise toxicological hazards related to GFNs after oral exposure. Thus, existing scientific literature in relation to in vitro degradation studies, in vitro and in vivo genotoxicity, toxicokinetics data, in vivo oral studies, and other in-depth studies such as effects on the microbiome has been revised. The obtained results showed that the investigations performed up to now did not follow internationally agreed-upon test guidelines. Moreover, GFNs seemed to resist gastrointestinal digestion and were able to be absorbed, distributed, and excreted, inducing toxic effects at different levels, including genotoxicity. Also, dose has an important role as it has been reported that low doses are more toxic than high doses because GFNs tend to aggregate in the digestive system, changing the internal exposure scenario. Thus, further studies including a thorough toxicological evaluation are required to protect consumer's safety.Junta de Andalucía US-1259106, P18-RT-199

Biotechnological production of taxanes: a molecular approach

Podeu consultar el llibre complet a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/46988Plant cell cultures constitute a promise for the production of a high number of phytochemicals, although the majority of bioprocesses that have been developed so far have not resulted commercially successful. An overview indicates that most of the research carried out until now is of the empirical type. For this reason, there is a need for a rational approach to the molecular and cellular basis of metabolic pathways and their regulation in order to stimulate future advances. The empirical investigations are based on the optimization of the culture system, exclusively considering input factors such as the selection of cellular lines, type and parameters of culture, bioreactor design and elicitor addition, and output factors such as cellular growth, the uptake system of nutrients, production and yield. In a rational approach towards the elucidation of taxol and related taxane production, our group has studied the relationship between the taxane profile and production and the expression of genes codifying for enzymes that participate in early, intermediate and late steps of their biosynthesis in elicited Taxus spp cell cultures. Our results show that elicitors induce a dramatic reprogramming of gene expression in Taxus cell cultures, which likely accounts for the enhanced production of taxol and related taxanes and we have also determined some genes that control the main flux limiting steps. The application of metabolic engineering techniques for the production of taxol and taxanes of interest is also discussed

Novel approaches on melatonin role: presence of clock-hormone in fish seminal plasma

The study of melatonin is of great importance for the fundamental knowledge of any living system since it displays many different physiological roles, including being a potent natural antioxidant. To the best of our knowledge, there is no information regarding melatonin in fish seminal plasma. This study aimed to determine this clock-hormone levels in the seminal plasma of three aquaculture fish species: European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax), gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata), and Senegalese sole (Solea senegalensis) (both wild and F1 breeders), and to explore melatonin potential role in fish reproduction and spermatozoa antioxidant status. Blood and seminal plasma were collected from fish during their reproductive season, at two different times of the day [mid-light (ML) and mid-dark (MD)], and melatonin concentration was determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA). Testosterone (T), 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), and total antioxidant status (TAS) were also determined, to investigate the putative role of seminal melatonin in fish reproduction, both at endocrine and antioxidant levels. For each species, Pearson's correlation analysis was performed between all possible factors. Blood plasma melatonin showed higher average values at night in the three species: gilthead seabream (808 +/- 139 pg/mL), European seabass (364 +/- 85 pg/mL), and Senegalese sole (248 +/- 40 and 88 +/- 11 pg/mL in F1 and wild males, respectively). However, melatonin levels in seminal plasma were species-specific: in European seabass, melatonin levels were not detectable at any time-point, whereas in gilthead seabream it was only found at MD (average of 21 pg/mL), and in Senegalese sole, different melatonin patterns were observed between F1 and wild males, but both had higher melatonin at MD (6.84 and 14.26 pg/mL, respectively). In gilthead seabream, at MD seminal melatonin levels correlated with the antioxidant status of seminal plasma. A relationship between blood melatonin and seminal TAS levels was observed in European seabass at ML: in this species, seminal melatonin could not be detected and the lowest seminal TAS levels were found. Regarding steroid analysis, opposite patterns in the seminal plasma of F1 and wild Senegalese sole were observed: at MD, wild Senegalese sole had substantially greater 11KT levels (2.53 ng/mL), whereas F1 males had higher T levels (1.92 ng/mL). In gilthead seabream, a positive correlation between T and ML blood melatonin and seminal TAS was observed. This study unraveled the species-specificity and daily changes of melatonin in fish seminal plasma.LA/P/0101/2020info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Bicuspid Aortic Valves With Different Spatial Orientations of the Leaflets Are Distinct Etiological Entities

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to decide whether bicuspid aortic valves (BAVs) with fused right and noncoronary leaflets (R-N) and BAVs with fused right and left leaflets (R-L) have different etiologies or are the product of a single diathesis.BackgroundThe BAV is the most common congenital cardiac malformation. The R-N and R-L BAVs are the most frequent BAV subtypes.MethodsThe study was carried out in adult and embryonic hearts of endothelium nitric oxide synthase knock-out mice and inbred Syrian hamsters with a high incidence of R-N and R-L BAVs, respectively. The techniques used were histochemistry, immunohistochemistry, and scanning electron microscopy.ResultsThe R-N BAVs result from a defective development of the cardiac outflow tract (OT) endocardial cushions that generates a morphologically anomalous right leaflet. The left leaflet develops normally. The R-L BAVs are the outcome of an extrafusion of the septal and parietal OT ridges that thereby engenders a sole anterior leaflet. The noncoronary leaflet forms normally.ConclusionsThe R-N and R-L BAVs are different etiological entities. The R-N BAVs are the product of a morphogenetic defect that happens before the OT septation and that probably relies on an exacerbated nitric oxide–dependent epithelial-to-mesenchymal transformation. The R-L BAVs result from the anomalous septation of the proximal portion of the OT, likely caused by a distorted behavior of neural crest cells. Care should be taken in further work on BAV genetics because R-N and R-L BAVs might rely on different genotypes. Detailed screening for R-N and R-L BAVs should be performed for a better understanding of the relationships between these BAV morphologic phenotypes and other heart disease

Neutral molecular markers support common origin of aluminium tolerance in three congeneric grass species growing in acidic soils

Aluminium (Al) toxicity is the main abiotic stress limiting plant productivity in acidic soils that are widely distributed among arable lands. Plant species differ in the level of Al resistance showing intraspecific and interspecific variation in many crop species. However, the origin of Al-tolerance is not well known. Three annual species, difficult to distinguish phenotypically and that were until recently misinterpreted as a single complex species under Brachypodium distachyon, have been recently separated into three distinct species: the diploids B. distachyon (2n = 10) and B. stacei (2n = 20), and B. hybridum (2n = 30), the allotetraploid derived from the two diploid species. The aims of this work were to know the origin of Al-tolerance in acidic soil conditions within these three Brachypodium species and to develop new DNA markers for species discrimination. Two multiplex SSR-PCRs allowed to genotype a group of 94 accessions for 17 pentanucleotide microsatellite (SSRs) loci. The variability for 139 inter-microsatellite (ISSRs) markers was also examined. The genetic relationships obtained using those neutral molecular markers (SSRs and ISSRs) support that all Al-tolerant allotetraploid accessions of B. hybridum have a common origin that is related with both geographic location and acidic soils. The possibility that the adaptation to acidic soils caused the isolation of the tolerant B. hybridum populations from the others is discussed. We finally describe a new, easy, DNA barcoding method based in the upstream-intron 1 region of the ALMT1 gene, a tool that is 100 % effective to distinguish among these three Brachypodium species