Socio-professional profile of the foreign teacher in Brazilian public university

Este trabajo, fruto de una tesis de doctorado en educación, tuvo como objetivo comprender la figura del profesor extranjero, su perfil, dificultades, retos y contribución a la permanencia en la reconstrucción de las prácticas didáctico-pedagógicas y su actuación como profesional docente en las universidades públicas brasileñas. El estudio se justifica debido a su número creciente, particularmente durante en los últimos diez años y que, por lo tanto, no ha sido objeto de investigación sistemática. Nuestro universo de investigación ha sido la UNB, Universidad pública federal de Brasilia, que concentra el mayor número de estos profesores. Utilizamos los datos del INEP (microdatos del censo de la educación superior, 2011) como base para localizar a estos docentes. Se aplicaron cuestionarios a más de 37,3% de las nacionalidades presentes (19 de 51 nacionalidades) que corresponde al 7,6% de una población estimada de 250 docentes, como documentos de consulta (sitios web de la escuela, sitio web personal, servicios de fotocopia). El análisis cualitativo y el tratamiento estadístico de los datos nos permitió obtener los siguientes Resultados: los profesores extranjeros que se encuentran en UNB son originarios, en su mayoría, de los países de América Latina y de Europa, son blancos o de color, son doctores y están contratados a tiempo completo y dedicación exclusiva. También intervienen en tareas de investigación y extensión. Estos docentes encuentran grandes dificultades de adaptación a sus lugares de trabajo debido a la falta de mecanismos de socialización y de ayuda en sus prácticas pedagógicas. A la luz de la complejidad del paradigma de Edgar Morin, se puede afirmar que el profesor extranjero sobrevive en la Universidad Pública Brasileña en medio de dilemas y contradicciones tales como problemas culturales, de alteridad y de aceptación por parte de los estudiantes, su inserción en la propia universidad es la busca permanente de medios para poder conectar. Sin embargo, debemos destacar la gran contribución de estos profesores a la calidad de los programas de grado y la inserción internacional de las universidades.This paper fruit of a doctorate thesis in education aimed to understand the foreign teacher, its profile, difficulties, contributions permanence challenges and reconstruction of didactic-pedagogical practices and for its professional exercise in the brazilian public universities. The study was justified because of their increasing number particularly during the last decade and also the lack of systematic research of the thematic. Our universe was the UnB, federal public university of Brasilia where we found the bigger number of these teachers. Using the INEP data (micro data of census of higher education, 2011) we could localize those ones. Questionnaires were applied to more than 37,3% of the nationalities present (19 of 51 nationalities) corresponding to 7,6% of the population estimated to 250 teachers, documents consulting (school websites, personnel website, photocopy services). The qualitative analysis and the statistical data treatment allowed us to obtain the following results: the teachers met at UnB are from Latin America and Europe, are white or brunet, are doctors and are contracted full time. They also act in teaching, research and extension. These teachers met many adaptation difficulties in their workplace due to a lack of socialization and help mechanisms in their teaching practices. By means of the complexity paradigm of Edgar Morin, we could confirm that the foreign teacher survive in the Brazilian public university within dilemmas and contradictions like cultural problems, alterity and acceptation by the students, its insertion in the own university and is always in search for means to connect the parts. Although, we could note the big contributions of these teachers in the quality of the graduate programs and the international insertion of their universities.Esse trabalho, fruto de uma tese de doutorado em educação buscou apreender o professor estrangeiro, no seu perfil, suas dificuldades, suas contribuições e desafios para a permanência e reconstrução das práticas didático-pedagógicas e para a atuação como profissional docente nas universidades públicas brasileiras. O estudo se justificou pelo fato de termos um grande número desses sujeitos nas universidades públicas brasileiras principalmente nos últimos dez anos e que, portanto, nunca foi ainda objeto de um estudo sistemático. Nosso universo de pesquisa foi a UnB, instituição pública federal que concentra o maior número desses professores. Dados do INEP (microdados do censo do ensino superior do ano de 2011) nos serviram de base para localizar esses docentes. Foram aplicados questionários a mais de 37,3% das nacionalidades presentes (19 das 51 nacionalidades) correspondendo a 7,6% de uma população de 250 professores além de entrevistas semiestruturadas, consulta a documentos disponibilizados nas IES e em outros locais (sites web das faculdades, sites pessoais e copiadoras). A análise qualitativa e o tratamento estatístico dos dados nos permitiram chegar as seguintes conclusões: os professores estrangeiros que se encontram na UNB são originários na sua maioria dos países da América Latina e da Europa, se declaram brancos ou pardos, têm títulos de doutores, trabalham em regime de dedicação exclusiva e atuam no ensino, pesquisa e extensão. Esses docentes encontram grandes dificuldades de adaptação em seus locais de trabalho devido à falta de mecanismos de socialização e de auxílio em suas práticas pedagógicas. À luz do paradigma da complexidade de Edgar Morin, pôde se afirmar que o professor estrangeiro sobrevive na universidade pública brasileira em meio a dilemas e contradições que vão desde inquietações culturais, alteridade e aceitação pelos alunos até sua própria integração na universidade e a busca permanente da união dessas partes. No entanto, há de se notar a grande contribuição desses professores no que tange à inserção dos programas de pós-graduação onde atua em altos patamares de qualidade além da além da inserção internacional.peerReviewe

Genetic variation in the HLA region is associated with susceptibility to herpes zoster.

Herpes zoster, commonly referred to as shingles, is caused by the varicella zoster virus (VZV). VZV initially manifests as chicken pox, most commonly in childhood, can remain asymptomatically latent in nerve tissues for many years and often re-emerges as shingles. Although reactivation may be related to immune suppression, aging and female sex, most inter-individual variability in re-emergence risk has not been explained to date. We performed a genome-wide association analyses in 22,981 participants (2280 shingles cases) from the electronic Medical Records and Genomics Network. Using Cox survival and logistic regression, we identified a genomic region in the combined and European ancestry groups that has an age of onset effect reaching genome-wide significance (P>1.0 × 10(-8)). This region tags the non-coding gene HCP5 (HLA Complex P5) in the major histocompatibility complex. This gene is an endogenous retrovirus and likely influences viral activity through regulatory functions. Variants in this genetic region are known to be associated with delay in development of AIDS in people infected by HIV. Our study provides further suggestion that this region may have a critical role in viral suppression and could potentially harbor a clinically actionable variant for the shingles vaccine

An exact expression to calculate the derivatives of position-dependent observables in molecular simulations with flexible constraints

In this work, we introduce an algorithm to compute the derivatives of physical observables along the constrained subspace when flexible constraints are imposed on the system (i.e., constraints in which the hard coordinates are fixed to configuration-dependent values). The presented scheme is exact, it does not contain any tunable parameter, and it only requires the calculation and inversion of a sub-block of the Hessian matrix of second derivatives of the function through which the constraints are defined. We also present a practical application to the case in which the sought observables are the Euclidean coordinates of complex molecular systems, and the function whose minimization defines the constraints is the potential energy. Finally, and in order to validate the method, which, as far as we are aware, is the first of its kind in the literature, we compare it to the natural and straightforward finite-differences approach in three molecules of biological relevance: methanol, N-methyl-acetamide and a tri-glycine peptideComment: 13 pages, 8 figures, published versio

Perspectives on the Trypanosoma cruzi-host cell receptor interaction

Chagas disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. The critical initial event is the interaction of the trypomastigote form of the parasite with host receptors. This review highlights recent observations concerning these interactions. Some of the key receptors considered are those for thromboxane, bradykinin, and for the nerve growth factor TrKA. Other important receptors such as galectin-3, thrombospondin, and laminin are also discussed. Investigation into the molecular biology and cell biology of host receptors for T. cruzi may provide novel therapeutic targets

Socio-professional profile of the foreign teacher in Brazilian public university

Este trabajo, fruto de una tesis de doctorado en educación, tuvo como objetivo comprender la figura del profesor extranjero, su perfil, dificultades, retos y contribución a la permanencia en la reconstrucción de las prácticas didáctico-pedagógicas y su actuación como profesional docente en las universidades públicas brasileñas. El estudio se justifica debido a su número creciente, particularmente durante en los últimos diez años y que, por lo tanto, no ha sido objeto de investigación sistemática. Nuestro universo de investigación ha sido la UNB, Universidad pública federal de Brasilia, que concentra el mayor número de estos profesores. Utilizamos los datos del INEP (microdatos del censo de la educación superior, 2011) como base para localizar a estos docentes. Se aplicaron cuestionarios a más de 37,3% de las nacionalidades presentes (19 de 51 nacionalidades) que corresponde al 7,6% de una población estimada de 250 docentes, como documentos de consulta (sitios web de la escuela, sitio web personal, servicios de fotocopia). El análisis cualitativo y el tratamiento estadístico de los datos nos permitió obtener los siguientes Resultados: los profesores extranjeros que se encuentran en UNB son originarios, en su mayoría, de los países de América Latina y de Europa, son blancos o de color, son doctores y están contratados a tiempo completo y dedicación exclusiva. También intervienen en tareas de investigación y extensión. Estos docentes encuentran grandes dificultades de adaptación a sus lugares de trabajo debido a la falta de mecanismos de socialización y de ayuda en sus prácticas pedagógicas. A la luz de la complejidad del paradigma de Edgar Morin, se puede afirmar que el profesor extranjero sobrevive en la Universidad Pública Brasileña en medio de dilemas y contradicciones tales como problemas culturales, de alteridad y de aceptación por parte de los estudiantes, su inserción en la propia universidad es la busca permanente de medios para poder conectar. Sin embargo, debemos destacar la gran contribución de estos profesores a la calidad de los programas de grado y la inserción internacional de las universidades.This paper fruit of a doctorate thesis in education aimed to understand the foreign teacher, its profile, difficulties, contributions permanence challenges and reconstruction of didactic-pedagogical practices and for its professional exercise in the brazilian public universities. The study was justified because of their increasing number particularly during the last decade and also the lack of systematic research of the thematic. Our universe was the UnB, federal public university of Brasilia where we found the bigger number of these teachers. Using the INEP data (micro data of census of higher education, 2011) we could localize those ones. Questionnaires were applied to more than 37,3% of the nationalities present (19 of 51 nationalities) corresponding to 7,6% of the population estimated to 250 teachers, documents consulting (school websites, personnel website, photocopy services). The qualitative analysis and the statistical data treatment allowed us to obtain the following results: the teachers met at UnB are from Latin America and Europe, are white or brunet, are doctors and are contracted full time. They also act in teaching, research and extension. These teachers met many adaptation difficulties in their workplace due to a lack of socialization and help mechanisms in their teaching practices. By means of the complexity paradigm of Edgar Morin, we could confirm that the foreign teacher survive in the Brazilian public university within dilemmas and contradictions like cultural problems, alterity and acceptation by the students, its insertion in the own university and is always in search for means to connect the parts. Although, we could note the big contributions of these teachers in the quality of the graduate programs and the international insertion of their universities.Esse trabalho, fruto de uma tese de doutorado em educação buscou apreender o professor estrangeiro, no seu perfil, suas dificuldades, suas contribuições e desafios para a permanência e reconstrução das práticas didático-pedagógicas e para a atuação como profissional docente nas universidades públicas brasileiras. O estudo se justificou pelo fato de termos um grande número desses sujeitos nas universidades públicas brasileiras principalmente nos últimos dez anos e que, portanto, nunca foi ainda objeto de um estudo sistemático. Nosso universo de pesquisa foi a UnB, instituição pública federal que concentra o maior número desses professores. Dados do INEP (microdados do censo do ensino superior do ano de 2011) nos serviram de base para localizar esses docentes. Foram aplicados questionários a mais de 37,3% das nacionalidades presentes (19 das 51 nacionalidades) correspondendo a 7,6% de uma população de 250 professores além de entrevistas semiestruturadas, consulta a documentos disponibilizados nas IES e em outros locais (sites web das faculdades, sites pessoais e copiadoras). A análise qualitativa e o tratamento estatístico dos dados nos permitiram chegar as seguintes conclusões: os professores estrangeiros que se encontram na UNB são originários na sua maioria dos países da América Latina e da Europa, se declaram brancos ou pardos, têm títulos de doutores, trabalham em regime de dedicação exclusiva e atuam no ensino, pesquisa e extensão. Esses docentes encontram grandes dificuldades de adaptação em seus locais de trabalho devido à falta de mecanismos de socialização e de auxílio em suas práticas pedagógicas. À luz do paradigma da complexidade de Edgar Morin, pôde se afirmar que o professor estrangeiro sobrevive na universidade pública brasileira em meio a dilemas e contradições que vão desde inquietações culturais, alteridade e aceitação pelos alunos até sua própria integração na universidade e a busca permanente da união dessas partes. No entanto, há de se notar a grande contribuição desses professores no que tange à inserção dos programas de pós-graduação onde atua em altos patamares de qualidade além da além da inserção internacional.peerReviewe

Acute febrile illness is associated with Rickettsia spp infection in dogs

BACKGROUND: Rickettsia conorii is transmitted by Rhipicephalus sanguineus ticks and causes Mediterranean Spotted Fever (MSF) in humans. Although dogs are considered the natural host of the vector, the clinical and epidemiological significance of R. conorii infection in dogs remains unclear. The aim of this prospective study was to investigate whether Rickettsia infection causes febrile illness in dogs living in areas endemic for human MSF. METHODS: Dogs from southern Italy with acute fever (n = 99) were compared with case–control dogs with normal body temperatures (n = 72). Serology and real-time PCR were performed for Rickettsia spp., Ehrlichia canis, Anaplasma phagocytophilum/A. platys and Leishmania infantum. Conventional PCR was performed for Babesia spp. and Hepatozoon spp. Acute and convalescent antibodies to R. conorii, E. canis and A. phagocytophilum were determined. RESULTS: The seroprevalence rates at first visit for R. conorii, E. canis, A. phagocytophilum and L. infantum were 44.8%, 48.5%, 37.8% and 17.6%, respectively. The seroconversion rates for R. conorii, E. canis and A. phagocytophilum were 20.7%, 14.3% and 8.8%, respectively. The molecular positive rates at first visit for Rickettsia spp., E. canis, A. phagocytophilum, A. platys, L. infantum, Babesia spp. and Hepatozoon spp. were 1.8%, 4.1%, 0%, 2.3%, 11.1%, 2.3% and 0.6%, respectively. Positive PCR for E. canis (7%), Rickettsia spp. (3%), Babesia spp. (4.0%) and Hepatozoon spp. (1.0%) were found only in febrile dogs. The DNA sequences obtained from Rickettsia and Babesia PCRs positive samples were 100% identical to the R. conorii and Babesia vogeli sequences in GenBank®, respectively. Febrile illness was statistically associated with acute and convalescent positive R. conorii antibodies, seroconversion to R. conorii, E. canis positive PCR, and positivity to any tick pathogen PCRs. Fourteen febrile dogs (31.8%) were diagnosed with Rickettsia spp. infection based on seroconversion and/or PCR while only six afebrile dogs (12.5%) seroconverted (P = 0.0248). The most common clinical findings of dogs with Rickettsia infection diagnosed by seroconversion and/or PCR were fever, myalgia, lameness, elevation of C-reactive protein, thrombocytopenia and hypoalbuminemia. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates acute febrile illness associated with Rickettsia infection in dogs living in endemic areas of human MSF based on seroconversion alone or in combination with PCR

Variation in WNT7A is unlikely to be a cause of familial Congenital Talipes Equinovarus

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Genetic factors make an important contribution to the aetiology of congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV), the most common developmental disorder of the lower limb. WNT7A was suggested as a candidate gene for CTEV on the basis of a genome-wide scan for linkage in a large multi-case family. WNT7A is a plausible candidate gene for CTEV as it provides a signal for pattern formation during limb development, and mutation in WNT7A has been reported in a number of limb malformation syndromes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We investigated the role of WNT7A using a family-based linkage approach in our large series of European multi-case CTEV families. Three microsatellite markers were used, of which one (D3S2385) is intragenic, and the other two (D3S2403, D3S1252) are 700 kb 5' to the start and 20 kb from the 3' end of the gene, respectively. Ninety-one CTEV families, comprising 476 individuals of whom 211 were affected, were genotyped. LOD scores using recessive and incomplete-dominant inheritance models, and non-parametric linkage scores, excluded linkage.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No significant evidence for linkage was observed using either parametric or non-parametric models. LOD scores for the parametric models remained strongly negative in the regions between the markers, and in the 0.5 cM intervals outside the marker map. No significant lod scores were obtained when the data were analysed allowing for heterogeneity.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our evidence suggests that the WNT7A gene is unlikely to be a major contributor to the aetiology of familial CTEV.</p

National Prevalence and Trends of HIV Transmitted Drug Resistance in Mexico

BACKGROUND: Transmitted drug resistance (TDR) remains an important concern for the management of HIV infection, especially in countries that have recently scaled-up antiretroviral treatment (ART) access. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We designed a study to assess HIV diversity and transmitted drug resistance (TDR) prevalence and trends in Mexico. 1655 ART-naïve patients from 12 Mexican states were enrolled from 2005 to 2010. TDR was assessed from plasma HIV pol sequences using Stanford scores and the WHO TDR surveillance mutation list. TDR prevalence fluctuations over back-projected dates of infection were tested. HIV subtype B was highly prevalent in Mexico (99.9%). TDR prevalence (Stanford score>15) in the country for the study period was 7.4% (95% CI, 6.2∶8.8) and 6.8% (95% CI, 5.7∶8.2) based on the WHO TDR surveillance mutation list. NRTI TDR was the highest (4.2%), followed by NNRTI (2.5%) and PI (1.7%) TDR. Increasing trends for NNRTI (p = 0.0456) and PI (p = 0.0061) major TDR mutations were observed at the national level. Clustering of viruses containing minor TDR mutations was observed with some apparent transmission pairs and geographical effects. CONCLUSIONS: TDR prevalence in Mexico remains at the intermediate level and is slightly lower than that observed in industrialized countries. Whether regional variations in TDR trends are associated with differences in antiretroviral drug usage/ART efficacy or with local features of viral evolution remains to be further addressed