Fluoro-perovskite nanomaterials for photodynamic cancer treatment”

Upconverting nanoparticles (UCNps) possess the ability to convert light from low to high energy. In particular, the absorption of radiation by these nanomaterials in the near-infrared region of the spectrum, and their subsequent emission in the visible region, is of great interest for biomedical applications. Conventional antitumor therapies often produce a high degree of side effects. Consequently, it is proposed to investigate the development of less invasive alternative therapies as photothermal therapy, using UCNps. The upconversion property could be achieved by incorporating dopants (rare earths and transition metals) in fluorine-based crystalline environments. On the other hand, it is important to control the size of the nanoparticles for their use in biomedical applications, for that reason we plan to obtain nanoparticles with an approximate size less than 50 nm. In the present work, the development of KMgF3 fluoroperovskite nanoparticles by solvothermal synthesis is presented, applying a factorial experimental design which consists of four factors (temperature, time and two limiting reagents) at two levels and choosing the average particle size as a variable response. The samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and Transmission Electron Microscopy, in order to know the crystalline phase and particle size. As a result, KMgF3 nanoparticles with an average size between 13 and 31 nm were obtained. In addition, data obtained were statistically processed by Analysis of Variance, to determine the significant factors and their interactions, achieving the optimal synthesis conditions. From these results, a series of samples doped with Mn2+ and/or Nd3+ were obtained in order to find the optimal dopant concentrations for efficient upconversion properties. Our work is the starting point for the development of UCNps allowing them to be applied in future antitumor therapies.Agencia Nacional de investigación e InnovaciónPrograma de Desarrollo de las Ciencias BásicasComisión Académica de Postgrad

Development of doped-KMgF3 fluoro-perovskite nanoparticles with upconversion properties for potential biomedical application

Upconverting nanoparticles (UCNps) possess the ability to convert light from low to high energy. In particular, the absorption of radiation by these nanomaterials in the near-infrared region of the spectrum, and their subsequent emission in the visible region, is of great interest for biomedical applications. Conventional antitumor therapies often produce a high degree of side effects. Consequently, it is proposed to investigate the development of less invasive alternative therapies as photothermal therapy, using UCNps. The upconversion property could be achieved by incorporating dopants (rare earths and transition metals) in fluorine-based crystalline environments. On the other hand, it is important to control the size of the nanoparticles for their use in biomedical applications, for that reason we plan to obtain nanoparticles with an approximate size less than 50 nm. In the present work, the development of KMgF3 fluoroperovskite nanoparticles by solvothermal synthesis is presented, applying a factorial experimental design which consists of four factors (temperature, time and two limiting reagents) at two levels and choosing the average particle size as a variable response. The samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and Transmission Electron Microscopy, in order to know the crystalline phase and particle size. As a result, KMgF3 nanoparticles with an average size between 13 and 31 nm were obtained. In addition, data obtained were statistically processed by Analysis of Variance, to determine the significant factors and their interactions, achieving the optimal synthesis conditions. From these results, a series of samples doped with Mn2+ and/or Nd3+ were obtained in order to find the optimal dopant concentrations for efficient upconversion properties. Our work is the starting point for the development of UCNps allowing them to be applied in future antitumor therapies.Agencia Nacional de investigación e InnovaciónPEDECIBAComisión Académica de Postgrad

“Protégete del sol, protégete del Lupus”. Integración curricular en el grado de Farmacia a través de la Metodología aprendizaje Servicio

[ES] El proyecto “Protégete del sol, protégete del Lupus”, emplea la estrategia metodológica de Aprendizaje Servicio como herramienta de integración curricular en la formación del futuro farmacéutico. El objetivo que se pretende alcanzar es aplicar, en un paciente crónico, un caso de intervención dermofarmacéutica, concretamente, se va a tratar la fotosensibilidad en el paciente de Lupus. En esta iniciativa, van a participar alumnos de 3º y 5º curso del grado de Farmacia de la Universidad San Jorge. Las asignaturas implicadas en el aprendizaje planteado son: Fisiología III (3º), Inmunología(3º), Dermofarmacia (5º), Medicamento Individualizado (5º) y Estancias Clínicas (5º). El objetivo de aprendizaje es la integración horizontal y vertical de asignaturas del grado de farmacia con un enfoque común, que es la salud del paciente crónico, concretamente, el paciente de Lupus; al cual se le ofrece un servicio: la información, prevención, análisis y dermoconsejo farmacéutico. Se va a trabajar con la Asociación de Pacientes ALADA (Asociación de Enfermos de Lupus y Antifosfolípido de Aragón. El proyecto conlleva una serie de actividades que tratan de compaginar el aprendizaje activo de los alumnos, mediante metodologías novedosas, con un servicio sanitario a la sociedad, representada, en este caso, por esta asociación de pacientes.Uriel Gallego, M.; Abarca Lachén, E.; Berenguer Torrijo, N.; Sáez-Benito Suescun, L.; Sáez-Benito Suescun, A.; Gómez Rincón, C. (2017). “Protégete del sol, protégete del Lupus”. Integración curricular en el grado de Farmacia a través de la Metodología aprendizaje Servicio. En In-Red 2017. III Congreso Nacional de innovación educativa y de docencia en red. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 303-314. https://doi.org/10.4995/INRED2017.2017.6756OCS30331

Long-term results between interval surgery and follow-up after percutaneous cholecystostomy: a retrospective cohort study

Introduction: Although cholecystectomy is the treatment of choice for acute cholecystitis (AC), in patients with high surgical risk percutaneous cholecystostomy (PC) is chosen in some cases. The aim of this report is to follow up these patients and evaluate biliary recurrences after PC. Methods: A descriptive retrospective study was carried out in a third level hospital from August 2005 to December 2014. All patients diagnosed with acute lithiasis cholecystitis who were indicated as initial treatment with antibiotic therapy and PC echo-guided were included. Patients requiring emergent cholecystectomy during hospital and those who died during the AC episode were excluded. After hospital discharge, the patients were divided into two groups group 1 (interval cholecystectomy) and group 2 (no surgery). Results: From the 86 healed patients, there were 8 losses in the follow-up, so 78 patients were analyzed group 1 (n = 12) and group 2 (n = 66

“Diseño experimental aplicado al desarrollo de nanopartículas de fluoro-perovskitas KMgF3 con propiedades de conversión ascendente con potencial aplicación biomédica”

Las nanopartículas de conversión ascendente (UCNps) poseen la capacidad de convertir la luz de baja a alta energía. En particular, la absorción de radiación de estos nanomateriales en la región infrarroja cercana (NIR) del espectro, y su posterior emisión en la región visible, resulta de gran interés para aplicaciones biomédicas. Las terapias anti-tumorales convencionales frecuentemente producen un alto grado de efectos colaterales. En consecuencia, se plantea investigar el desarrollo de terapias alternativas menos invasivas, empleando las UCNps. La propiedad de conversión ascendente se logra incorporando dopantes (tierras raras y metales de transición) en entornos cristalinos a base de flúor. En este trabajo se presenta el desarrollo de nanopartículas de fluoro-perovskita de KMgF3 mediante síntesis solvotérmica, aplicando el diseño experimental factorial, con el fin de conocer las condiciones óptimas de síntesis. Este diseño comprende cuatro factores (temperatura, tiempo y dos reactivos limitantes) a dos niveles y eligiéndose como variable de respuesta el tamaño de partícula. Las muestras fueron caracterizadas mediante difracción de rayos X de polvo y Microscopía Electrónica de Transmisión, con el fin de conocer la fase, cristalinidad y tamaño de partícula. Se obtuvieron nanopartículas de KMgF3 de tamaño promedio entre 13 y 31 nm. Los datos obtenidos fueron procesados estadísticamente mediante análisis de varianza, determinando así los factores significativos y sus interacciones, permitiendo conocer las condiciones óptimas de síntesis. Este trabajo es el punto de partida para la posterior incorporación de dopantes a las nanopartículas permitiendo en el futuro ser aplicadas en terapias anti-tumorales.Agencia Nacional de investigación e InnovaciónPrograma de Desarrollo de las Ciencias BásicasComisión Académica de Postgrad

Magnetic and Electrical Properties of Ordered 112-type Perovskite LnBaCoMnO5+\delta (Ln = Nd, Eu)

Investigation of the oxygen-deficient 112-type ordered oxides of the type LnBaCoMnO5+\delta (Ln = Nd, Eu) evidences certain unusual magnetic behavior at low temperatures, compared to the LnBaCo2O5+\delta cobaltites. One observes that the substitution of manganese for cobalt suppresses the ferromagnetic state and induces strong antiferromagnetic interactions. Importantly, NdBaCoMnO5.9 depicts a clear paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic type transition around 220 K, whereas for EuBaCoMnO5.7 one observes an unusual magnetic behavior below 177 K which consists of ferromagnetic regions embedded in an antiferromagnetic matrix. The existence of two sorts of crystallographic sites for Co/Mn and their mixed valence states favor the ferromagnetic interaction whereas antiferromagnetism originates from the Co3+-O-Co3+ and Mn4+-O-Mn4+ interactions. Unlike the parent compounds, the present Mn-substituted phases do not exhibit prominent magnetoresistance effects in the temperature range 75-400K.Comment: 23 pages including figure

Ghrelin Indirectly Activates Hypophysiotropic CRF Neurons in Rodents

Ghrelin is a stomach-derived hormone that regulates food intake and neuroendocrine function by acting on its receptor, GHSR (Growth Hormone Secretagogue Receptor). Recent evidence indicates that a key function of ghrelin is to signal stress to the brain. It has been suggested that one of the potential stress-related ghrelin targets is the CRF (Corticotropin-Releasing Factor)-producing neurons of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus, which secrete the CRF neuropeptide into the median eminence and activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. However, the neural circuits that mediate the ghrelin-induced activation of this neuroendocrine axis are mostly uncharacterized. In the current study, we characterized in vivo the mechanism by which ghrelin activates the hypophysiotropic CRF neurons in mice. We found that peripheral or intra-cerebro-ventricular administration of ghrelin strongly activates c-fos – a marker of cellular activation – in CRF-producing neurons. Also, ghrelin activates CRF gene expression in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis at peripheral level. Ghrelin administration directly into the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus also induces c-fos within the CRF-producing neurons and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, without any significant effect on the food intake. Interestingly, dual-label immunohistochemical analysis and ghrelin binding studies failed to show GHSR expression in CRF neurons. Thus, we conclude that ghrelin activates hypophysiotropic CRF neurons, albeit indirectly

Comparando dos estrategias de aprendizaje activo para enseñar Scrum en un curso introductorio de ingeniería de software

Active learning comprises any process in which students are actively engaged in building understanding of facts, ideas, and skills through instructor-directed tasks and activities undertaken mainly during classes. In this paper we presented results from a comparison of two active learning strategies to teach the agile Scrum framework in the context of an introductory software engineering course. The comparison was carried out through a quasi-experiment in which participants were divided into two groups. The first group used the strategy of active reading on basic concepts of Scrum, while for the other group a game was used; representing two teaching strategies for active learning. The results gave indications at the population level that there are significant differences in the concepts learned by the members of both groups and ratifies the use of active learning strategies to teach Scrum. The results provided empirical evidence indicating that using various active learning strategies facilitates the retention and appropriation of concepts related to Scrum and offer teachers a point of reference about the effectiveness of these two strategies of active learning to teach Scrum concepts. © 2020, Universidad de Tarapaca. All rights reserved