19 research outputs found

    De la competencia a la cooperación: los cambios de paradigmas en la ecología basada en rasgos cambian nuestro entendimiento de los procesos que estructuran a las comunidades microbianas

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    Prevailing social, economic and political ideas and paradigms constitute the lens through which scientists observe, assess, and understand the world. This affects how we interpret and understand the mechanisms governing the interaction between organisms and has led, in most cases, to dominant explanations and paradigms that are difficult to overthrow. This is the case of ecological theory, whose perspectives have followed the rationale of societal changes. From the industrial revolution to very recently, species competition for resources was regarded as one of the main drivers of species interactions. Nowadays, a new and rapidly growing way of thinking emerged, fueled by the high sequencing capacities, ultra-resolution microscopy and the slowly growing number of different social and gender perspectives participating in ecological studies: that living beings are not just single organisms interacting with other single organisms, but complex communities of macro- and microorganisms living and evolving together. The information emerging from this field is bringing new light to previously disregarded aspects of the ecological interactions that, in our opinion, will change the main paradigms in ecology. As members of a South American scientific network of Aquatic Microbial Ecology (MicroSudAqua), here we propose to explore alternative explanations for ecological observations, searching for new traits accounting for cooperation between microorganisms as a fundamental evolutionary and ecological strategy.Las ideas y paradigmas sociales, económicos y políticos prevalecientes constituyen la lente a través de la cual las científicas y los científicos observamos, evaluamos y comprendemos el mundo. A menudo, esto impregna y afecta la interpretación de los mecanismos que rigen las interacciones entre organismos, y llega a generar paradigmas difíciles de poner en discusión. Un ejemplo es el caso de la teoría ecológica, cuyas perspectivas han seguido la lógica de los cambios sociales. Desde la época de la Revolución Industrial hasta muy recientemente, la competencia interespecífica por los recursos se consideró como una de las formas principales en que las especies interactúan. En la actualidad, presenciamos un cambio en la forma de pensar; su crecimiento es veloz, impulsado por las capacidades de secuenciación masiva, la microscopía de ultra resolución y la cantidad cada vez mayor de diferentes perspectivas sociales y de género con la que se abordan los estudios de ecología. Esta nueva perspectiva implica que los seres vivos no son organismos solitarios que interactúan con otros organismos solitarios, sino comunidades complejas de macro y microorganismos que conviven y evolucionan juntos. La información que emerge de este campo está dando nuevos aportes a aspectos antes ignorados de las interacciones ecológicas; en nuestra opinión, estos aportes cambiarán los principales paradigmas de la ecología. Como integrantes de la Red Científica Sudamericana de Ecología Microbiana Acuática (MicroSudAqua), en este trabajo exploramos explicaciones alternativas de las observaciones ecológicas, buscando nuevos rasgos que den cuenta de la cooperación entre microorganismos como una estrategia evolutiva y ecológica fundamental

    Direct-acting antiviral therapy improves kidney survival in hepatitis C virus-associated cryoglobulinaemia: the RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study

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    Background: Direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) have shown high rates of sustained virological response in chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. However, the influence of DAAs on the course of kidney involvement in HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinaemia (HCV-MC) has been little studied. The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of antiviral treatment on kidney prognosis and evolution in patients diagnosed with HCV-MC. Methods: The RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study is an observational multicentre cohort study of 139 patients with HCV-MC from 14 Spanish centres. Clinical and laboratory parameters were measured before and after antiviral treatment. Primary endpoints were kidney survival and mortality after HCV-MC diagnosis. Secondary endpoints were clinical, immunological and virological responses after antiviral treatment. Results: Patients were divided into three groups based on the treatment received: treatment with DAAs (n = 100) treatment with interferon (IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) (n = 24) and no treatment (n = 15). Patients were followed up for a median duration of 138 months (interquartile range 70-251. DAA treatment reduced overall mortality {hazard ratio [HR] 0.12 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04-0.40]; P < 0.001} and improved kidney survival [HR 0.10 ( 95% CI 0.04-0.33); P < 0.001]. Conclusions: Results from the RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study indicated that DAA treatment in patients with HCV-MC improves kidney survival and reduces mortality

    Digital platform and open resources on restorative justice

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    Se explica la elaboración de una plataforma digital sobre justicia restaurativa de la UCM, continuando los Proyectos de Innovación precedentes sobre la misma temática y con el fin de digitalizar el contenido precedente. El proyecto posee en dos dimensiones: de un lado, la formativa, que ha consistido en asegurar la formación teórico-práctica de los alumnos en materia de justicia restaurativa a través de la estrategia Aprendizaje y Servicio y contando con la red de contactos que hemos confeccionado a lo largo de estos años, apostando por la enseñanza virtual y la internacionalización. Por otro lado, se encuentra la dimensión estrictamente innovadora, pues el proyecto implica apostar por innovación de recursos en abierto y enseñanza virtual, confeccionando la plataforma digital sobre el tema que ha vertebrado sobre dos iniciativas: la creación de un MOOC por parte de alumnos y profesores y la puesta en marcha de una Web dentro de la UCM con material disponible y publico sobre esta dimensión tan importante de la justicia, enmarcándola dentro de todos los programas universitarios centrados en la Agenda 2030.The development of a digital platform on restorative justice of the UCM is explained, continuing the preceding Innovation Projects on the same theme and aiming to digitize the preceding content. The project possesses two dimensions: on the one hand, the formative, which has consisted of ensuring the theoretical-practical training of pupils in restorative justice through the Learning and Service strategy and counting on the network of contacts we have made throughout these years, betting on virtual teaching and internationalization. On the other hand, the strictly innovative dimension is found, as the project involves betting on open resource innovation and virtual teaching, making the digital platform on the theme that has vertebrated on two initiatives: the creation of a MOOC by students and professors and the launch of a Web site within UCM with available and public material on this so important dimension of justice, framing it within all university programs centered on the 2030 Agenda.Depto. de Derecho Internacional, Eclesiástico y Filosofía del DerechoFac. de DerechoFALSEsubmitte

    Risk factors for non-diabetic renal disease in diabetic patients

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    Background. Diabetic patients with kidney disease have a high prevalence of non-diabetic renal disease (NDRD). Renal and patient survival regarding the diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy (DN) or NDRD have not been widely studied. The aim of our study is to evaluate the prevalence of NDRD in patients with diabetes and to determine the capacity of clinical and analytical data in the prediction of NDRD. In addition, we will study renal and patient prognosis according to the renal biopsy findings in patients with diabetes. Methods. Retrospective multicentre observational study of renal biopsies performed in patients with diabetes from 2002 to 2014. Results. In total, 832 patients were included: 621 men (74.6%), mean age of 61.7 6 12.8 years, creatinine was 2.8 6 2.2 mg/dL and proteinuria 2.7 (interquartile range: 1.2–5.4) g/24 h. About 39.5% (n ¼ 329) of patients had DN, 49.6% (n ¼ 413) NDRD and 10.8% (n ¼ 90) mixed forms. The most frequent NDRD was nephroangiosclerosis (NAS) (n ¼ 87, 9.3%). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, older age [odds ratio (OR) ¼ 1.03, 95% CI: 1.02–1.05, P < 0.001], microhaematuria (OR ¼ 1.51, 95% CI: 1.03–2.21, P ¼ 0.033) and absence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) (OR ¼ 0.28, 95% CI: 0.19–0.42, P < 0.001) were independently associated with NDRD. Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that patients with DN or mixed forms presented worse renal prognosis than NDRD (P < 0.001) and higher mortality (P ¼ 0.029). In multivariate Cox analyses, older age (P < 0.001), higher serum creatinine (P < 0.001), higher proteinuria (P < 0.001), DR (P ¼ 0.007) and DN (P < 0.001) were independent risk factors for renal replacement therapy. In addition, older age (P < 0.001), peripheral vascular disease (P ¼ 0.002), higher creatinine (P ¼ 0.01) and DN (P ¼ 0.015) were independent risk factors for mortality. Conclusions. The most frequent cause of NDRD is NAS. Elderly patients with microhaematuria and the absence of DR are the ones at risk for NDRD. Patients with DN presented worse renal prognosis and higher mortality than those with NDRD. These results suggest that in some patients with diabetes, kidney biopsy may be useful for an accurate renal diagnosis and subsequently treatment and prognosis

    Diverse Large HIV-1 Non-subtype B Clusters Are Spreading Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Spain

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    In Western Europe, the HIV-1 epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) is dominated by subtype B. However, recently, other genetic forms have been reported to circulate in this population, as evidenced by their grouping in clusters predominantly comprising European individuals. Here we describe four large HIV-1 non-subtype B clusters spreading among MSM in Spain. Samples were collected in 9 regions. A pol fragment was amplified from plasma RNA or blood-extracted DNA. Phylogenetic analyses were performed via maximum likelihood, including database sequences of the same genetic forms as the identified clusters. Times and locations of the most recent common ancestors (MRCA) of clusters were estimated with a Bayesian method. Five large non-subtype B clusters associated with MSM were identified. The largest one, of F1 subtype, was reported previously. The other four were of CRF02_AG (CRF02_1; n = 115) and subtypes A1 (A1_1; n = 66), F1 (F1_3; n = 36), and C (C_7; n = 17). Most individuals belonging to them had been diagnosed of HIV-1 infection in the last 10 years. Each cluster comprised viruses from 3 to 8 Spanish regions and also comprised or was related to viruses from other countries: CRF02_1 comprised a Japanese subcluster and viruses from 8 other countries from Western Europe, Asia, and South America; A1_1 comprised viruses from Portugal, United Kingom, and United States, and was related to the A1 strain circulating in Greece, Albania and Cyprus; F1_3 was related to viruses from Romania; and C_7 comprised viruses from Portugal and was related to a virus from Mozambique. A subcluster within CRF02_1 was associated with heterosexual transmission. Near full-length genomes of each cluster were of uniform genetic form. Times of MRCAs of CRF02_1, A1_1, F1_3, and C_7 were estimated around 1986, 1989, 2013, and 1983, respectively. MRCA locations for CRF02_1 and A1_1 were uncertain (however initial expansions in Spain in Madrid and Vigo, respectively, were estimated) and were most probable in Bilbao, Spain, for F1_3 and Portugal for C_7. These results show that the HIV-1 epidemic among MSM in Spain is becoming increasingly diverse through the expansion of diverse non-subtype B clusters, comprising or related to viruses circulating in other countries

    [Montreal 1976] [Material gráfico]

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    Contiene fotografías pertenecientes al archivo fotográfico del diario "Región", publicadas entre 1974 y 1976, aunque la mayoría en 1976Todas las fotografías firmadas por Foto E. Gar (Oviedo), Cifra Gráfica, y EF

    Curso MOOC de Introducción a los Estudios Ingleses en la UCM

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    El Curso Introducción a los Estudios Ingleses de la UCM servirá de refuerzo de diversas cuestiones académicas relacionadas con los estudios que se cursan en el Grado de Estudios Ingleses en la Facultad de Filología. Podrá ser cursado por estudiantes de nuestra Facultad a modo de refuerzo y consolidación de bases. Uno de los beneficios de este curso es que los estudiantes adquieren un papel central en el proceso de aprendizaje, lo cual conlleva a una alta motivación que redundará en una mejor preparación para enfrentarse a las asignaturas de las titulaciones que estén cursando o vayan a cursar en un futuro. Asimismo la innovación tecnológica en la metodología empleada en el Curso Introducción a los Estudios Ingleses de la UCM facilitará a los estudiantes el uso de una gran variedad de recursos para su formación. El Curso está programado para ser realizado en 4 semanas. Consta de 4 módulos y cada Módulo tendrá una duración de 1 semana con una dedicación de 6 u 8 horas de trabajo total aproximadamente por parte del estudiante. El curso ha sido diseñado y elaborado por seis profesoras pertenecientes al Departamento de Estudios Ingleses: Lingüística y Literatura de la Facultad de Filología: Jelena Bobkina - Cristina Calle Martínez - Elena Domínguez Romero - María Goicoechea de Jorge - Ana María Mellides Téllez - Carmen Méndez García.Vicerrectorado de Calidad UCMDepto. de Estudios Ingleses: Lingüística y LiteraturaFac. de FilologíaFALSEsubmitte

    Signs Indicative of Central Sensitization Are Present but Not Associated with the Central Sensitization Inventory in Patients with Focal Nerve Injury

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    Objective: Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common focal nerve injury. People with CTS may show alterations in central processing of nociceptive information. It remains unclear whether the central sensitization inventory (CSI) is capable of detecting such altered central pain processing. Methods: Thirty healthy volunteers were matched with 30 people with unilateral CTS from the orthopaedic waitlist. Changes to central pain processing were established through psychophysical sensory testing (bilateral pressure pain thresholds (PPT), conditioned pain modulation, temporal summation) and pain distribution on body charts. Patients also completed pain severity and function questionnaires, psychological questionnaires and the CSI. Results: Compared to healthy volunteers, patients with CTS have lower PPTs over the carpal tunnel bilaterally (t = &minus;4.06, p &lt; 0.0001 ipsilateral and t = &minus;4.58, p &lt; 0.0001 contralateral) and reduced conditioned pain modulation efficacy (t = &minus;7.31, p &lt;0.0001) but no differences in temporal summation (t = 0.52, p = 0.60). The CSI was not associated with psychophysical measures or pain distributions indicative of altered central pain processing. However, there was a correlation of the CSI with the Beck Depression Inventory (r = 0.426; p = 0.019). Conclusion: Patients with CTS show signs of altered central pain mechanisms. The CSI seems unsuitable to detect changes in central pain processing but is rather associated with psychological factors in people with focal nerve injuries
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