Una revisión sobre la predicción del rendimiento académico mediante métodos de ensamble

Introduction: This article is a product of the research “Ensemble methods to estimate the academic perfor-mance of higher education students”, developed at the Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas in the year 2021, focusing on the review of research work developed in the last five years related to the prediction of academic performance using ensemble algorithms. Objective: The literature review aims to identify the most used algorithms and the most relevant variables in the prediction of academic performance.Methodology: A systematic review of the literature was carried out in different academic databases (Science Direct, Scopus, SAGE Journals, EBSCO, ResearchGate, Google Scholar), using search equations built with keywords.Results: 54 related articles were found that meet the inclusion criteria of the review. Additionally, benefits were found in the application of ensemble methods in the prediction of academic performance.Conclusion: It was found that the most influential variables in academic performance correspond to the aca-demic factor. The algorithm used that presents the best results is Random Forest; in addition to being the most used. The use of these algorithms is an accurate tool to predict academic performance at any stage of university life, and at the same time provide information to generate strategies to improve dropout and academic retention indicators.Introducción: El presente artículo es producto de la investigación “Métodos de ensamble para estimar el ren-dimiento académico de estudiantes de educación superior”, desarrollado en la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas en el año 2021 y se centra en la revisión de trabajos de investigación desarrollados en los últimos cinco años relacionados a la predicción del rendimiento académico utilizando algoritmos de ensamble.Objetivo: La revisión de la literatura tiene como objetivo identificar los algoritmos más utilizados y las variables más relevantes en la predicción del rendimiento académico.Metodología: Se realizó una revisión sistemática de la literatura en distintas bases de datos académicas (Science Direct, Scopus, SAGE Journals, EBSCO, ResearchGate, Google Scholar), utilizando ecuaciones de bús-queda construidas con palabras claves.Resultados: Se encontraron 54 artículos relacionados que cumplen con los criterios de inclusión de la revisión. Además, se encontraron beneficios en la aplicación de métodos de ensamble en la predicción del rendimiento académico. Conclusión: Se encontró que las variables más influyentes en el rendimiento académico corresponden al factor académico, el algoritmo utilizado que presenta mejores resultados es Random Forest, además de que fue el más utilizado, y que el uso de estos algoritmos es una herramienta precisa para predecir el rendimiento acadé-mico en cualquier etapa de la vida universitaria, y a su vez brindar la información para generar estrategias que permitan mejorar los indicadores de deserción y retención académica

Cabbage and fermented vegetables : From death rate heterogeneity in countries to candidates for mitigation strategies of severe COVID-19

Large differences in COVID-19 death rates exist between countries and between regions of the same country. Some very low death rate countries such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, or the Balkans have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods. Although biases exist when examining ecological studies, fermented vegetables or cabbage have been associated with low death rates in European countries. SARS-CoV-2 binds to its receptor, the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). As a result of SARS-CoV-2 binding, ACE2 downregulation enhances the angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT(1)R) axis associated with oxidative stress. This leads to insulin resistance as well as lung and endothelial damage, two severe outcomes of COVID-19. The nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) is the most potent antioxidant in humans and can block in particular the AT(1)R axis. Cabbage contains precursors of sulforaphane, the most active natural activator of Nrf2. Fermented vegetables contain many lactobacilli, which are also potent Nrf2 activators. Three examples are: kimchi in Korea, westernized foods, and the slum paradox. It is proposed that fermented cabbage is a proof-of-concept of dietary manipulations that may enhance Nrf2-associated antioxidant effects, helpful in mitigating COVID-19 severity.Peer reviewe

Nrf2-interacting nutrients and COVID-19 : time for research to develop adaptation strategies

There are large between- and within-country variations in COVID-19 death rates. Some very low death rate settings such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, the Balkans and Africa have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods whose intake is associated with the activation of the Nrf2 (Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2) anti-oxidant transcription factor. There are many Nrf2-interacting nutrients (berberine, curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate, genistein, quercetin, resveratrol, sulforaphane) that all act similarly to reduce insulin resistance, endothelial damage, lung injury and cytokine storm. They also act on the same mechanisms (mTOR: Mammalian target of rapamycin, PPAR gamma:Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor, NF kappa B: Nuclear factor kappa B, ERK: Extracellular signal-regulated kinases and eIF2 alpha:Elongation initiation factor 2 alpha). They may as a result be important in mitigating the severity of COVID-19, acting through the endoplasmic reticulum stress or ACE-Angiotensin-II-AT(1)R axis (AT(1)R) pathway. Many Nrf2-interacting nutrients are also interacting with TRPA1 and/or TRPV1. Interestingly, geographical areas with very low COVID-19 mortality are those with the lowest prevalence of obesity (Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia). It is tempting to propose that Nrf2-interacting foods and nutrients can re-balance insulin resistance and have a significant effect on COVID-19 severity. It is therefore possible that the intake of these foods may restore an optimal natural balance for the Nrf2 pathway and may be of interest in the mitigation of COVID-19 severity

A Review on the prediction of students’ academic performance using ensemble methods.

El presente artículo es producto de la investigación “Métodos de ensamble para estimar el rendimiento académico de estudiantes de educación superior”, desarrollado en la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas en el año 2021 y se centra en la revisión de trabajos de investigación desarrollados en los últimos cinco años relacionados a la predicción del rendimiento académico utilizando algoritmos de ensamble.This article is a product of the research "Ensemble methods to estimate the academic performance of higher education students", developed at the Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas in the year 2021, and this focuses on the review of research work developed in the last five years related to the prediction of academic performance using ensemble algorithms

The type 2 diabetes-associated HMG20A gene is mandatory for islet beta cell functional maturity article

HMG20A (also known as iBRAF) is a chromatin factor involved in neuronal differentiation and maturation. Recently small nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the HMG20A gene have been linked to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) yet neither expression nor function of this T2DM candidate gene in islets is known. Herein we demonstrate that HMG20A is expressed in both human and mouse islets and that levels are decreased in islets of T2DM donors as compared to islets from non-diabetic donors. In vitro studies in mouse and human islets demonstrated that glucose transiently increased HMG20A transcript levels, a result also observed in islets of gestating mice. In contrast, HMG20A expression was not altered in islets from diet-induced obese and pre-diabetic mice. The T2DM-associated rs7119 SNP, located in the 3′ UTR of the HMG20A transcript reduced the luciferase activity of a reporter construct in the human beta 1.1E7 cell line. Depletion of Hmg20a in the rat INS-1E cell line resulted in decreased expression levels of its neuronal target gene NeuroD whereas Rest and Pax4 were increased. Chromatin immunoprecipitation confirmed the interaction of HMG20A with the Pax4 gene promoter. Expression levels of Mafa, Glucokinase, and Insulin were also inhibited. Furthermore, glucose-induced insulin secretion was blunted in HMG20A-depleted islets. In summary, our data demonstrate that HMG20A expression in islet is essential for metabolism-insulin secretion coupling via the coordinated regulation of key islet-enriched genes such as NeuroD and Mafa and that depletion induces expression of genes such as Pax4 and Rest implicated in beta cell de-differentiation. More importantly we assign to the T2DM-linked rs7119 SNP the functional consequence of reducing HMG20A expression likely translating to impaired beta cell mature function

Cabbage and fermented vegetables: From death rate heterogeneity in countries to candidates for mitigation strategies of severe COVID-19

Large differences in COVID-19 death rates exist between countries and between regions of the same country. Some very low death rate countries such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, or the Balkans have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods. Although biases exist when examining ecological studies, fermented vegetables or cabbage have been associated with low death rates in European countries. SARS-CoV-2 binds to its receptor, the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). As a result of SARS-CoV-2 binding, ACE2 downregulation enhances the angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT1R) axis associated with oxidative stress. This leads to insulin resistance as well as lung and endothelial damage, two severe outcomes of COVID-19. The nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) is the most potent antioxidant in humans and can block in particular the AT1R axis. Cabbage contains precursors of sulforaphane, the most active natural activator of Nrf2. Fermented vegetables contain many lactobacilli, which are also potent Nrf2 activators. Three examples are: kimchi in Korea, westernized foods, and the slum paradox. It is proposed that fermented cabbage is a proof-of-concept of dietary manipulations that may enhance Nrf2-associated antioxidant effects, helpful in mitigating COVID-19 severity.</p