Movimientos sociales: ¿Último bastión de la izquierda latinoamericana?

Reseña de: Petras, James y Veltmeyer, Henry (2005), Social Movements and State Power. Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Pluto Press, Londre

El vínculo ideacional entre la democracia y el Mercosur

Reseña de: Gardini, Gian Luca, The Origins of Mercosur. Democracy and Regionalization in South America, Ed. Palgrave Macmillan, febrero de 2010

Bolivia y la salida al mar

This paper tackles with the Evo Morales government claim on achieving an access to the sea. I present both the juridical path through international courts as well as the political one, mainly represented in regional summits. And finally I conclude with the expectations and reactions that have arisen in Bolivia and Chile.Este artículo aborda la reivindicación del gobierno de Evo Morales para conseguir una salida al mar. Se comentan tanto la vía jurídica en cortes internacionales, como la vía política en cumbres regionales. Y, finalmente, se concluye con las expectativas y reacciones generadas en Bolivia y en Chile

Unasur y su aporte a la resolución de conflictos sudamericanos : el caso de Bolivia

En este trabajo se analizan los cambios a la hora de abordar la seguridad en Sudamérica tras el surgimiento de la Unasur, especialmente en relación con amenazas no tradicionales, esto es, no ya conflictos entre estados, sino principalmente conflictos internos por razones sociopolíticas, étnicas, terroristas o de otra índole. En este sentido, se pondrá el foco en los hechos que tuvieron lugar en Bolivia en 2008, con el riesgo de secesión interna, y con la determinante participación de la Unasur para evitar la escalada de tensión. Así, en última instancia, se aborda la capacidad de Unasur como un nuevo interlocutor válido y necesario para resolver diferentes tipos de conflictos en la región sudamericanaIn this paper, changes on security in South America after the emergence of Unasur are analyzed, notably in relation to new threats or non‐traditional threats, that is, not just interstate conflicts but also intrastate conflicts produced by sociopolitical, ethnic, terrorist or other reasons. According to this, the analytical focus is on the events that took place in Bolivia in 2008, jeopardizing the integrity of the country and aiming a process of secession; whereas Unasur’s diplomatic activity was decisive to avoid the increasing polarization. Thus, at the end of the day, I tackle Unasur’s capacity to become a successful mediator in order to solve different types of conflicts in the South American regio

El proceso de integración regional del Mercosur: ¿qué papel juegan los factores ideacionales?

Tesis doctoral inédita. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Derecho. Departamento de Ciencia Política y Relaciones Internacionale

Unasur y su aporte a la resolución de conflictos sudamericanos : el caso de Bolivia

En este trabajo se analizan los cambios a la hora de abordar la seguridad en Sudamérica tras el surgimiento de la Unasur, especialmente en relación con amenazas no tradicionales, esto es, no ya conflictos entre estados, sino principalmente conflictos internos por razones sociopolíticas, étnicas, terroristas o de otra índole. En este sentido, se pondrá el foco en los hechos que tuvieron lugar en Bolivia en 2008, con el riesgo de secesión interna, y con la determinante participación de la Unasur para evitar la escalada de tensión. Así, en última instancia, se aborda la capacidad de Unasur como un nuevo interlocutor válido y necesario para resolver diferentes tipos de conflictos en la región sudamericanaIn this paper, changes on security in South America after the emergence of Unasur are analyzed, notably in relation to new threats or non‐traditional threats, that is, not just interstate conflicts but also intrastate conflicts produced by sociopolitical, ethnic, terrorist or other reasons. According to this, the analytical focus is on the events that took place in Bolivia in 2008, jeopardizing the integrity of the country and aiming a process of secession; whereas Unasur’s diplomatic activity was decisive to avoid the increasing polarization. Thus, at the end of the day, I tackle Unasur’s capacity to become a successful mediator in order to solve different types of conflicts in the South American regio

El Acuerdo TransPacífico y su efecto en América Latina

A TransPacific Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement is currently being negotiated among a great amount of countries in both sides of the Pacific ocean, while developing a TransAtlantic Partnership between the US and the EU. In this work this commercial scenario, covering several continents, is presented from a Latin American perspective, emphasizing the effects that these agreements could produce on this region. And furthermore, the analysis of these ways of international insertion shows us the competing logics which coexist across the Latin American region.Actualmente se están negociando un Acuerdo TransPacífico en comercio e inversión, que abarca a un gran número de países bañados por el océano del mismo nombre, al mismo tiempo que se avanza en un acuerdo trans-Atlántico entre Estados Unidos y la Unión Europea. En este trabajo se aborda este escenario de megabloques comerciales desde la óptica de los efectos que pueda acarrear para América Latina y se visibiliza cómo estas formas de inserción internacional también ponen de manifiesto las diferentes lógicas existentes en el contexto latinoamericano

The action of obestatin in skeletal muscle repair: stem cell expansion, muscle growth, and microenvironment remodeling

The development of therapeutic strategies for skeletal muscle diseases, such as physical injuries and myopathies, depends on the knowledge of regulatory signals that control the myogenic process. The obestatin/GPR39 system operates as an autocrine signal in the regulation of skeletal myogenesis. Using a mouse model of skeletal muscle regeneration after injury and several cellular strategies, we explored the potential use of obestatin as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of trauma-induced muscle injuries. Our results evidenced that the overexpression of the preproghrelin, and thus obestatin, and GPR39 in skeletal muscle increased regeneration after muscle injury. More importantly, the intramuscular injection of obestatin significantly enhanced muscle regeneration by simulating satellite stem cell expansion as well as myofiber hypertrophy through a kinase hierarchy. Added to the myogenic action, the obestatin administration resulted in an increased expression of VEGF/VEGFR2 and the consequent microvascularization, with no effect on collagen deposition in skeletal muscle. Furthermore, the potential inhibition of myostatin during obestatin treatment might contribute to its myogenic action improving muscle growth and regeneration. Taken together, our data demonstrate successful improvement of muscle regeneration, indicating obestatin is a potential therapeutic agent for skeletal muscle injury and would benefit other myopathies related to muscle regeneration

Plant-associated symbiotic Burkholderia species lack hallmark strategies required in mammalian pathogenesis

Burkholderia is a diverse and dynamic genus, containing pathogenic species as well as species that form complex interactions with plants. Pathogenic strains, such as B. pseudomallei and B. mallei, can cause serious disease in mammals, while other Burkholderia strains are opportunistic pathogens, infecting humans or animals with a compromised immune system. Although some of the opportunistic Burkholderia pathogens are known to promote plant growth and even fix nitrogen, the risk of infection to infants, the elderly, and people who are immunocompromised has not only resulted in a restriction on their use, but has also limited the application of non-pathogenic, symbiotic species, several of which nodulate legume roots or have positive effects on plant growth. However, recent phylogenetic analyses have demonstrated that Burkholderia species separate into distinct lineages, suggesting the possibility for safe use of certain symbiotic species in agricultural contexts. A number of environmental strains that promote plant growth or degrade xenobiotics are also included in the symbiotic lineage. Many of these species have the potential to enhance agriculture in areas where fertilizers are not readily available and may serve in the future as inocula for crops growing in soils impacted by climate change. Here we address the pathogenic potential of several of the symbiotic Burkholderia strains using bioinformatics and functional tests. A series of infection experiments using Caenorhabditis elegans and HeLa cells, as well as genomic characterization of pathogenic loci, show that the risk of opportunistic infection by symbiotic strains such as B. tuberum is extremely low

Synthetic conjugates of ursodeoxycholic acid inhibit cystogenesis in experimental models of polycystic liver disease

Background and aims: polycystic liver diseases (PLDs) are genetic disorders characterized by progressive development of symptomatic biliary cysts. Current surgical and pharmacological approaches are ineffective, and liver transplantation represents the only curative option. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and histone deacetylase 6 inhibitors (HDAC6is) have arisen as promising therapeutic strategies, but with partial benefits. Approach and results: here, we tested an approach based on the design, synthesis, and validation of a family of UDCA synthetic conjugates with selective HDAC6i capacity (UDCA-HDAC6i). Four UDCA-HDAC6i conjugates presented selective HDAC6i activity, UDCA-HDAC6i #1 being the most promising candidate. UDCA orientation within the UDCA-HDAC6i structure was determinant for HDAC6i activity and selectivity. Treatment of polycystic rats with UDCA-HDAC6i #1 reduced their hepatomegaly and cystogenesis, increased UDCA concentration, and inhibited HDAC6 activity in liver. In cystic cholangiocytes UDCA-HDAC6i #1 restored primary cilium length and exhibited potent antiproliferative activity. UDCA-HDAC6i #1 was actively transported into cells through BA and organic cation transporters. Conclusions: these UDCA-HDAC6i conjugates open a therapeutic avenue for PLDs