Arte, formación docente y prácticas de la enseñanza

En el presente escrito se busca compartir algunas reflexiones sobre las prácticas de enseñanza en el nivel superior universitario para la formación de profesores de arte. Como marco referencial, las prácticas de enseñanza se consideran instancias de reflexión que conllevan una relación dialéctica entre sujeto, acción y contexto, posibilitando una lectura crítica despojada de sentido común. El arte, en estos términos, se entiende como objeto de enseñanza y aprendizaje, constituyéndose un conocimiento de bien público, lo cual implica concebir la educación como derecho, vinculándola con lo prescripto en el Sistema Educativo Nacional para la Educación Artística. Para ampliar el análisis recurrimos a una experiencia de prácticas de enseñanza realizada en nuestro trayecto formativo. La misma, propuesta por Didáctica Especial y Práctica de la Enseñanza, tuvo la modalidad de observación participante en Lenguaje Visual 1B, ambas cátedras pertenecientes a la Facultad de Bellas Artes de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Consideramos que este artículo ofrece a los estudiantes, futuros profesores, un aporte para generar aproximaciones, interrogantes y debates que posibiliten seguir apostando a la mejora de la enseñanza.Facultad de Bellas Arte

Arte, formación docente y prácticas de la enseñanza

En el presente escrito se busca compartir algunas reflexiones sobre las prácticas de enseñanza en el nivel superior universitario para la formación de profesores de arte. Como marco referencial, las prácticas de enseñanza se consideran instancias de reflexión que conllevan una relación dialéctica entre sujeto, acción y contexto, posibilitando una lectura crítica despojada de sentido común. El arte, en estos términos, se entiende como objeto de enseñanza y aprendizaje, constituyéndose un conocimiento de bien público, lo cual implica concebir la educación como derecho, vinculándola con lo prescripto en el Sistema Educativo Nacional para la Educación Artística. Para ampliar el análisis recurrimos a una experiencia de prácticas de enseñanza realizada en nuestro trayecto formativo. La misma, propuesta por Didáctica Especial y Práctica de la Enseñanza, tuvo la modalidad de observación participante en Lenguaje Visual 1B, ambas cátedras pertenecientes a la Facultad de Bellas Artes de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Consideramos que este artículo ofrece a los estudiantes, futuros profesores, un aporte para generar aproximaciones, interrogantes y debates que posibiliten seguir apostando a la mejora de la enseñanza.Facultad de Bellas Arte

Mulheres que “Têm Tudo”: Família versus Trabalho em um Estudo de Caso de uma Empresa Norueguesa no Brasil

 We investigate the relationship between parentality and careers in a Norwegian corporation in Brazil, and  using Joan Acker’s theory Gendered Organizations, we study how parental life could affect work life. Acker’s framework, especially Process 4: ‘the internal mental work of individuals making sense of their place and opportunities in the gendered organization’ is useful on societal, organizational and individual levels. We develop the framework by comparing men’s and women’s mental work regarding parentality and career opportunities. Results show that women want longer leaves, knowing that maternity is an obstacle. Men do not want longer father leave, and do not see fatherhood as obstacle. However, women agree with men about the company being supportive of their family life. We question the idea of “choices” for women since maternity is central when obstacles to careers are analyzed. Discrimination is blunt; women see it, even if they do not know how exactly it works. “Having it all” is a central theme of lack of satisfaction for women, in Brazil aselsewhere. Exporting gender equality in the context of this multinational company might be more an expectation, perception and/or myth than a reality, despite the current official statements. An analysis based on Acker and Brazilian authors point to the need of approaching organizations/careers x family considering e.g. parentality and care work, rather than maternity only. This work offers practical contributions to the diversity discussion and we suggest, for further studies, inclusion of e.g. race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and class.Investigamos a relação entre parentalidade e carreira em uma corporação norueguesa no Brasil, pelas lentes da teoria das  Organizações Generificadas de Joan Acker. A estrutura de Acker, especialmente o Processo 4: “o trabalho mental interno de indivíduos dando sentido ao seu lugar e oportunidades na organização generificada” é útil nos níveis social, organizacional e individual. Desenvolvemos a estrutura comparando o trabalho mental de homens e mulheres em relação à parentalidade e oportunidades de carreira. Os resultados mostram que as mulheres querem licença maternidade mais longa, sabendo que a maternidade é um obstáculo. Os homens não querem licença paterna mais longa e não veem a paternidade como obstáculo. No entanto, ambos concordam a respeito do apoio da empresa à vida familiar. Questionamos a ideia de “escolhas” para as mulheres, uma vez que a maternidade é central quando se analisam os obstáculos à carreira. A discriminação é direta; as mulheres veem, mesmo que não saibam exatamente como funciona. “Ter Tudo” é um tema central da insatisfação das mulheres, tanto no Brasil quanto em outros lugares. A exportação de igualdade de gênero no contexto desta empresa multinacional pode ser mais uma expectativa, percepção e/ou mito do que uma realidade, apesar dos discursos oficiais. Uma análise das pesquisas de Acker e autoras brasileiras aponta a necessidade de abordar organizações/carreiras x família considerando parentalidade e trabalho do cuidado, ao invés de maternidade apenas. Este trabalho oferece contribuições práticas para a discussão da diversidade e sugerimos, para estudos posteriores, a inclusão de raça/etnia, orientação sexual e classe

A murine systemic model for shigellosis

Summary Shigella spp. are pathogenic bacteria responsible for bacillary dysentery in humans. The major lesions in colonic mucosa are intense inflammation with apoptosis of macrophages and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. The study of shigellosis is hindered by the natural resistance of rodents to oral infection with Shigella. Therefore, animal models exploit other routes of infection. Here, we describe a novel murine model in which animals receive shigellae via the caudal vein. Mice infected with 5 × 106 (LD50) virulent shigellae died at 48 h post infection, whereas animals receiving non-invasive mutants survived. The liver is the main target of infection, where shigellae induce microgranuloma formation. In mice infected with invasive bacteria, high frequency of apoptotic cells is observed within hepatic microgranulomas along with significant levels of mRNA for pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1β, IL-18, IL-12 and IFN-γ. Moreover, in the blood of these animals high levels of IL-6 and transaminases are detected. Our results demonstrate the intravenous model is suitable for pathogenicity studies and useful to explore the immune response after Shigella infection

Analysis of hepatitis B virus preS1 variability and prevalence of the rs2296651 polymorphism in a Spanish population

Altres ajuts: Cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF); and the Gilead Fellowship Program, No. GLD14-00296.To determine the variability/conservation of the domain of hepatitis B virus (HBV) preS1 region that interacts with sodium-taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (hereafter, NTCP-interacting domain) and the prevalence of the rs2296651 polymorphism (S267F, NTCP variant) in a Spanish population. Serum samples from 246 individuals were included and divided into 3 groups: patients with chronic HBV infection (CHB) (n = 41, 73% Caucasians), patients with resolved HBV infection (n = 100, 100% Caucasians) and an HBV-uninfected control group (n = 105, 100% Caucasians). Variability/conservation of the amino acid (aa) sequences of the NTCP-interacting domain, (aa 2-48 in viral genotype D) and a highly conserved preS1 domain associated with virion morphogenesis (aa 92-103 in viral genotype D) were analyzed by next-generation sequencing and compared in 18 CHB patients with viremia > 4 log IU/mL. The rs2296651 polymorphism was determined in all individuals in all 3 groups using an in-house real-time PCR melting curve analysis. The HBV preS1 NTCP-interacting domain showed a high degree of conservation among the examined viral genomes especially between aa 9 and 21 (in the genotype D consensus sequence). As compared with the virion morphogenesis domain, the NTCP-interacting domain had a smaller proportion of HBV genotype-unrelated changes comprising > 1% of the quasispecies (25.5% vs 31.8%), but a larger proportion of genotype-associated viral polymorphisms (34% vs 27.3%), according to consensus sequences from GenBank patterns of HBV genotypes A to H. Variation/conservation in both domains depended on viral genotype, with genotype C being the most highly conserved and genotype E the most variable (limited finding, only 2 genotype E included). Of note, proline residues were highly conserved in both domains, and serine residues showed changes only to threonine or tyrosine in the virion morphogenesis domain. The rs2296651 polymorphism was not detected in any participant. In our CHB population, the NTCP-interacting domain was highly conserved, particularly the proline residues and essential amino acids related with the NTCP interaction, and the prevalence of rs2296651 was low/null

Upscaling of Electrospinning Technology and the Application of Functionalized PVDF-HFP@TiO2 Electrospun Nanofibers for the Rapid Photocatalytic Deactivation of Bacteria on Advanced Face Masks

In recent years, Electrospinning (ES) has been revealed to be a straightforward and innovative approach to manufacture functionalized nanofiber-based membranes with high filtering performance against fine Particulate Matter (PM) and proper bioactive properties. These qualities are useful for tackling current issues from bacterial contamination on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) surfaces to the reusability of both disposable single-use face masks and respirator filters. Despite the fact that the conventional ES process can be upscaled to promote a high-rate nanofiber production, the number of research works on the design of hybrid materials embedded in electrospun membranes for face mask application is still low and has mainly been carried out at the laboratory scale. In this work, a multi-needle ES was employed in a continuous processing for the manufacturing of both pristine Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride-co-Hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) nanofibers and functionalized membrane ones embedded with TiO2 Nanoparticles (NPs) (PVDF-HFP@TiO2). The nanofibers were collected on Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) nonwoven spunbond fabric and characterized by using Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX), Raman spectroscopy, and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) analysis. The photocatalytic study performed on the electrospun membranes proved that the PVDF-HFP@TiO2 nanofibers provide a significant antibacterial activity for both Staphylococcus aureus (~94%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (~85%), after only 5 min of exposure to a UV-A light source. In addition, the PVDF-HFP@TiO2 nanofibers exhibit high filtration efficiency against submicron particles (~99%) and a low pressure drop (~3 mbar), in accordance with the standard required for Filtering Face Piece masks (FFPs). Therefore, these results aim to provide a real perspective on producing electrospun polymer-based nanotextiles with self-sterilizing properties for the implementation of advanced face masks on a large scale

Viral Immune signatures from cerebrospinal fluid extracellular vesicles and particles in HAM and other chronic neurological diseases

Background and objectivesExtracellular vesicles and particles (EVPs) are released from virtually all cell types, and may package many inflammatory factors and, in the case of infection, viral components. As such, EVPs can play not only a direct role in the development and progression of disease but can also be used as biomarkers. Here, we characterized immune signatures of EVPs from the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of individuals with HTLV-1-associated myelopathy (HAM), other chronic neurologic diseases, and healthy volunteers (HVs) to determine potential indicators of viral involvement and mechanisms of disease.MethodsWe analyzed the EVPs from the CSF of HVs, individuals with HAM, HTLV-1-infected asymptomatic carriers (ACs), and from patients with a variety of chronic neurologic diseases of both known viral and non-viral etiologies to investigate the surface repertoires of CSF EVPs during disease.ResultsSignificant increases in CD8+ and CD2+ EVPs were found in HAM patient CSF samples compared to other clinical groups (p = 0.0002 and p = 0.0003 compared to HVs, respectively, and p = 0.001 and p = 0.0228 compared to MS, respectively), consistent with the immunopathologically-mediated disease associated with CD8+ T-cells in the central nervous system (CNS) of HAM patients. Furthermore, CD8+ (p < 0.0001), CD2+ (p < 0.0001), CD44+ (p = 0.0176), and CD40+ (p = 0.0413) EVP signals were significantly increased in the CSF from individuals with viral infections compared to those without.DiscussionThese data suggest that CD8+ and CD2+ CSF EVPs may be important as: 1) potential biomarkers and indicators of disease pathways for viral-mediated neurological diseases, particularly HAM, and 2) as possible meditators of the disease process in infected individuals

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy genetic risk variants for pharmacovigilance of immunosuppressant therapies

BackgroundProgressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is a rare and often lethal brain disorder caused by the common, typically benign polyomavirus 2, also known as JC virus (JCV). In a small percentage of immunosuppressed individuals, JCV is reactivated and infects the brain, causing devastating neurological defects. A wide range of immunosuppressed groups can develop PML, such as patients with: HIV/AIDS, hematological malignancies (e.g., leukemias, lymphomas, and multiple myeloma), autoimmune disorders (e.g., psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus), and organ transplants. In some patients, iatrogenic (i.e., drug-induced) PML occurs as a serious adverse event from exposure to immunosuppressant therapies used to treat their disease (e.g., hematological malignancies and multiple sclerosis). While JCV infection and immunosuppression are necessary, they are not sufficient to cause PML.MethodsWe hypothesized that patients may also have a genetic susceptibility from the presence of rare deleterious genetic variants in immune-relevant genes (e.g., those that cause inborn errors of immunity). In our prior genetic study of 184 PML cases, we discovered 19 candidate PML risk variants. In the current study of another 152 cases, we validated 4 of 19 variants in both population controls (gnomAD 3.1) and matched controls (JCV+ multiple sclerosis patients on a PML-linked drug ≥ 2 years).ResultsThe four variants, found in immune system genes with strong biological links, are: C8B, 1-57409459-C-A, rs139498867; LY9 (alias SLAMF3), 1-160769595-AG-A, rs763811636; FCN2, 9-137779251-G-A, rs76267164; STXBP2, 19-7712287-G-C, rs35490401. Carriers of any one of these variants are shown to be at high risk of PML when drug-exposed PML cases are compared to drug-exposed matched controls: P value = 3.50E-06, OR = 8.7 [3.7–20.6]. Measures of clinical validity and utility compare favorably to other genetic risk tests, such as BRCA1 and BRCA2 screening for breast cancer risk and HLA-B*15:02 pharmacogenetic screening for pharmacovigilance of carbamazepine to prevent Stevens-Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis.ConclusionFor the first time, a PML genetic risk test can be implemented for screening patients taking or considering treatment with a PML-linked drug in order to decrease the incidence of PML and enable safer use of highly effective therapies used to treat their underlying disease