Pathological Mineralization: The Potential of Mineralomics

Pathological mineralization has been reported countless times in the literature and is a well-known phenomenon in the medical field for its connections to a wide range of diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases. The minerals involved in calcification, however, have not been directly studied as extensively as the organic components of each of the pathologies. These have been studied in isolation and, for most of them, physicochemical properties are hitherto not fully known. In a parallel development, materials science methods such as electron microscopy, spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and others have been used in biology mainly for the study of hard tissues and biomaterials and have only recently been incorporated in the study of other biological systems. This review connects a range of soft tissue diseases, including breast cancer, age-related macular degeneration, aortic valve stenosis, kidney stone diseases, and Fahr’s syndrome, all of which have been associated with mineralization processes. Furthermore, it describes how physicochemical material characterization methods have been used to provide new information on such pathologies. Here, we focus on diseases that are associated with calcium-composed minerals to discuss how understanding the properties of these minerals can provide new insights on their origins, considering that different conditions and biological features are required for each type of mineral to be formed. We show that mineralomics, or the study of the properties and roles of minerals, can provide information which will help to improve prevention methods against pathological mineral build-up, which in the cases of most of the diseases mentioned in this review, will ultimately lead to new prevention or treatment methods for the diseases. Importantly, this review aims to highlight that chemical composition alone cannot fully support conclusions drawn on the nature of these minerals

The living aortic valve: From molecules to function.

The aortic valve lies in a unique hemodynamic environment, one characterized by a range of stresses (shear stress, bending forces, loading forces and strain) that vary in intensity and direction throughout the cardiac cycle. Yet, despite its changing environment, the aortic valve opens and closes over 100,000 times a day and, in the majority of human beings, will function normally over a lifespan of 70-90 years. Until relatively recently heart valves were considered passive structures that play no active role in the functioning of a valve, or in the maintenance of its integrity and durability. However, through clinical experience and basic research the aortic valve can now be characterized as a living, dynamic organ with the capacity to adapt to its complex mechanical and biomechanical environment through active and passive communication between its constituent parts. The clinical relevance of a living valve substitute in patients requiring aortic valve replacement has been confirmed. This highlights the importance of using tissue engineering to develop heart valve substitutes containing living cells which have the ability to assume the complex functioning of the native valve

Il diritto d'asilo nell'Unione Europea: evoluzione e prospettive

openT.DOR.15/16.5C

O acesso civil as armas como direito e garantia fundamental: conflito entre o estatuto do desarmamento e Constituição Federal

Abstract: the monograph addressing the issue of access to firearms as a Fundamental Right and Guarantee. A work is divided into three chapters. Chapter 1 is a process of historical analysis of data series in Brazil and the world, with a detailed theoretical description, bringing a detailed history, going to a dialysis and Gramishiana and marxiation, also philosophical and totally legal. In the second chapter, the conceptual and doctrinal issues, related to fundamental principles, rights and guarantees. The last third chapter gives rise to an eminently legal analysis of access as weapons as a right and a fundamental guarantee, addressing existing legislation, there is no law that is analyzed by constitutional bias. In the first chapter, concluding that, historically, the five governments have authoritatively banned access as weapons to ensure population domination, while countries argue that the citizen has access to arms as the maintenance of that freedom. In the second, we work on doctrinal and pedagogical concepts about fundamental rights and guarantees. Finally, there is no third, from conditioned, constitutionally verified, concluded rights, which are the effective rights in favor of copyright and the rights reserved to certain resources, and what is the access to the arms to allow the self-defense of rights and fundamental guarantees, and we also address the unconstitutionality present in its legal order to prohibit the carrying of a weapon, preventing selfdefense of rights at the time of its attack.Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso (Graduação)Resumo: a aludida monografia aborda a temática do acesso às armas de fogo como Direito e Garantia Fundamental. A obra é dividida em três capítulos. No capítulo inicial é desenvolvida uma análise histórica dos movimentos desarmamentistas no Brasil e no mundo, denotando uma análise teórica detalhada, trazendo um aprofundamento histórico, oposto a doutrinação Marxista e Gramishiana, também filosófico e essencialmente jurídico. No segundo capítulo, são abordamos questões conceituais e doutrinárias, relativas à aos princípios, direitos e garantias fundamentais. O derradeiro terceiro capítulo dá lugar a uma análise eminentemente jurídica sobre o acesso as armas como direito e garantia fundamental, abordando a legislação vigente, no qual a está legislação é analisada pelo viés da constitucional. No primeiro capítulo, conclui-se que historicamente vários governos autoritários baniram o acesso as armas para garantir a dominação da população, enquanto países defendem que o cidadão tenha acesso as armas como manutenção dessa liberdade. No segundo, trabalhamos sobre conceitos doutrinários e pedagógicos sobre os direitos e garantias fundamentais. Por fim, no terceiro, a partir dos princípios constitucionais anteriormente abordados, concluímos que para serem efetivos os direitos e garantias fundamentais dependem de um instrumento jurídico, qual seja o acesso às armas para permitir a autodefesa destes direitos e garantias fundamentais, e ainda abordamos a inconstitucionalidade presente em nosso ordenamento jurídico ao proibir o porte de arma, impedindo a autodefesa destes direitos no momento de seu ataque

The football tourism trend: implications over management issues regarding local football heritage

Introduction and objective(s): The attendance of tourists in stadiums is not a new phenomenon in football history and indeed can be attested each weekend in all tournaments around the world, even at lower divisions. However, particularly in this decade, a considerable flow of tourists has become a permanent part of globally-famous football clubs after visiting the stadiums' tours, museums, or to experience a match-day. For instance, VisitBritain’s 2015 report on football tourism revealed that 800,000 tourism visitors went to a football match in the UK in 2014 and spent around £684 million. On the other hand, the ‘FC Barcelona Museum and Camp Nou Experience’ attracted 1.7m of visitors in 2017, a number higher than registered in the Picasso museum, which gave to the club the title of most visited sports museum in Europe and the most visited museum in the city of Barcelona.Since tourists present higher levels of consumption (merchandise sales, expensive tickets, and hospitality services packages), thus contributing to boosting commercial and broadcasting deals, which is fundamental to secure the best players, trainers, and managers in the race for national and international titles, they have continuously been encouraged through marketing campaigns to visit football clubs. However, in specific stadiums of famous-global clubs (e.g., Manchester United, Liverpool, and F.C. Barcelona), the “hot traditional football culture custodian” (Giulianotti, 2002), characterized based on locality and long-term identification with club’s history and heritage have been criticizing theinflux of tourists. According to them, tourists are creating contested traditions considered disruptive to fandom tradition (e.g., half-and-half scarves and extensive use of smartphones) and to the increase in ticket prices. From a heritage and management lenses, this proposed paper seeks to discuss the potential challenges that football clubs are already facing as a result of this increasing form of cultural consumption through tourism, in particular the impacts on local football heritage. Methods: This research is based on an extensive documental analysis of examined numerous football and tourism-related researches, club-based fanzines, websites and reports, social media vehicles of professional football clubs as well as official tourism websites of many cities and countries. It also counted with field observations by the first author in two official matches played in England during November and December of 2018. The first match attended was between Manchester United and Young Boys for the Champions League (11.28.18), while the second was the 'Merseyside Derby' between Liverpool and Everton (12.01.18). The methods adopted were fundamental to have access to a broader contextualization of the football tourism trend since its genesis and its scales of development hitherto. Results and Discussion: As Evans and Norcliff (2016) concluded in an ethnography study about Liverpool Football Club, there is a new “football space” symbolized by the interaction of the globalized sport, economics of cities and its teams, and the cultural significance of the sport to tourists and residents. Recent studies revealed that the promotion of heritage elements such as stadium atmosphere, fandom traditions, and remarkable players (Sondaal, 2013; VisitBritain 2015) presented and packaged through broadcasted matches influenced tourists to make a pilgrimage or experience a day out in the football grounds of the Premier League.As such, football is now packaged and sold as a tourist attraction forcing clubs, cities, and countries to adapt to face the challenges and opportunities that come along. As a consequence of the concerns and beliefs nurtured by specific group of fans, social exclusion processes were identified at Barcelona and Liverpool stadiumsafter tourists waved half and half scarves; wore half and half t-shirts; adopted a silent behavior; or for even supported the opponent the home fans. Differently than being in a VIP section, where tourists’ satisfaction is under control, at the stands other hosts are in place with a potential to ruin the dreamed experience of these tourists that once attacked can destroy the reputation of the club through social media which by its turn have a significant influence on the decision to attend a match (Peng, Chen, & Kwon, 2016). Based on this scenario, this paper also seeks to push further discussions regarding the possible transformation of football stadiums as multicultural spaces rather than the symbol of local communities. In this token, what are the management measures that clubs must make to preserve what is now being marketized to attract visitors – heritage - and at the same time profiting from visitors and keeping a positive relationship with its local fan base? Conclusions: The presence of tourists in specific football grounds is a reality that will keep promoting debates for solutions to the way the sport is vivid in the 21st century. This global cocktail of tourism and football has the potential to bring critical environmental and socio-cultural changes in the core of certain clubs that will demand management solutions. The definite integration of tourists in the stadiums, where visitors are far more profitable customers than local fans invites scholars to find answers about how it will be possible to balance profit from tourists while preserving the local culture, traditions, identity, and heritage of the club

EL ACCESO A LA INFORMACIÓN AMBIENTAL EN CHILE

El artículo desarrolla un estudio sobre algunos temas relacionados con el acceso a la información ambiental en Chile. Parte con analizar las nociones de información pública y medio ambiente, y su interpretación en la jurisprudencia del Consejo para la Transparencia chileno y en la doctrina; además, identifica el tipo de informaciones que más frecuentemente es objeto de una reclamación ante el Consejo. Enseguida, examina la categoría de sujetos obligados a entregar la información. En fin, se concluye revisando los casos de denegación de acceso, que son divididos en dos grandes grupos: los que se fundan en las causales de reserva o secreto previstas en la legislación y los que originan de factores distintos de las causales (ej. retraso). El objetivo del artículo consiste en identificar los puntos más relevantes de la normativa y jurisprudencia nacionales en materia de acceso a la información ambiental, para poder trazar algunos paralelismos e identificar las diferencias más destacadas que existen entre el ordenamiento jurídico chileno y el derecho comparado o internacional

Discapacidad y Educación Sexual. Aportes desde la Comunicación

Trabajo Final para optar al grado académico de Licenciatura en Comunicación Social, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba Calificación 10 (Diez) Orientación AudiovisualEl presente trabajo final se propone hacer un aporte comunicacional, a través de herramientas lúdicas, a las estrategias de Educación Sexual Integral (ESI) aplicables en los contextos escolares haciendo foco en las personas con discapacidad. Para abordar la problemática referida a la sexualidad de las personas con discapacidad nos posicionarnos desde el Modelo Biopsicosocial y el paradigma de Derechos Humanos. A lo largo de esta investigación nos encontramos con mitos, prejuicios y tabúes sobre la temática, además de mayor factibilidad de distintos tipos de violencias, abusos y violaciones dirigidas a este colectivo particularmente vulnerable. Por estas razones, consideramos que el aporte desde la comunicación resulta relevante para la prevención o detección de estas problemáticas en contextos micro, al tiempo que brinda nuevos conocimientos sobre ESI. Además del relevamiento y sistematización bibliográfica y normativa, se realizaron entrevistas a especialistas en la materia y a docentes. También se hizo un proceso de observación no participativa en el Instituto San Ignacio, ubicado en la ciudad de San Luis, para obtener información de primera mano que, triangulada con las otras técnicas mencionadas, permitió planificar y desarrollar un producto comunicacional que contribuya a satisfacer los objetivos planteados. Cabe mencionar que se contó con el apoyo y asesoramiento de personal dedicado a las áreas de Salud, a través del Programa de Salud Sexual Reproductiva y no Reproductiva de San Luis, y Educación con la colaboración del personal del Instituto y Fundación San Ignacio, además de los profesionales que fueron entrevistados pertenecientes a otras instituciones. En síntesis, se trata de una investigación que concluye en un producto lúdico que favorece a la comunicación y pretende contribuir a la Educación Sexual Integral de niños, niñas y adolescentes con discapacidad.Fil: Jaimez Bertazzo, Sofía. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias de la Comunicación; Argentina

AS PAISAGENS DE ROBERT WILSON

Este ensaio objetiva refletir sobre a noção de paisagem ao tomar como exemplo o trabalho do encenador Robert Wilson, especificamente, por intermédio das obras Adan's Passion e Videos Portraits. A paisagem é entendida aqui como um campo de força correlacional, de performatividades em ação. Para tanto, argumenta-se a partir de teóricos como, por exemplo, Erika Fischer-Lichte, Hans-Thies Lehmann e Luiz Roberto Brant de Carvalho Galizia

Dynamic Docking, Path Analysis and Free Energy Computation in Protein-Ligand Binding

Comprehending how drugs interact with biological macromolecules to form a complex with consequent biological response is particularly relevant in drug design to guide a rational design of new active compounds. The establishment and the duration of the protein-ligand binding complex is principally determined by thermodynamics and kinetics of the dynamical process of molecular recognition. Thus, an accurate characterization of the free-energy governing the formation of the protein-ligand complex is of fundamental importance to deeply understand each contribution to the establishment of the molecular complex. Experimental biophysical techniques proved to be efficient in characterizing both thermodynamics and kinetics of protein-ligand binding. However, a detailed description of the whole binding process on a mechanistic level is not possible since only a quantitative estimation is allowed. Conversely, from the computational point of view, plain molecular dynamics, which has been increasingly considered as the method of choice to investigate the entire dynamic process upon complex formation and to predict the associated thermodynamic and kinetic observables, cannot be applied in a routinely drug discovery pipeline because of the high computational cost. In this context, this PhD thesis wants to address specific aspects of the protein-ligand binding process. In particular, it will deal with dynamic docking, thermodynamics and kinetics of protein-ligand binding by devising respectively three different computational protocols. We developed a dynamic docking protocol based on potential-scaled (sMD) simulations, in which the protein and the ligand are let completely flexible in order to predict the protein-ligand binding pose within a reasonable computational time. Then, we investigated the applicability of sMD in describing the kinetic behavior of a series of drug-like molecules and we devised a fully automated method to analyze the unbinding trajectories. Finally, we develop a semi-automated protocol based on path collective variables combined with well-tempered metadynamics to estimate free-energies along a binding path