Agency Theory (AT): Theoretical Assumptions Applicable to University Management

En Iberoamérica han surgido inquietudes con respecto a la efectividad de las universidades, particularmente respecto de su calidad. Se tiene como premisa indiscutida que la gestión del gobierno universitario es uno de los factores determinantes para mejorar el quehacer administrativo y, desde ahí, las tareas académicas. El propósito de este trabajo es realizar un análisis desde la teoría de agencia (TA ) como una aproximación que puede ayudar a detectar y corregir problemas de gestión del gobierno universitario, entendiendo que se trata de una deriva teórica y no doctrinaria. Para lograr este propósito, se procedió a revisar más de un centenar de textos y artículos publicados en revistas académicas de prestigio internacional. Como hallazgos relevantes, se pueden destacar la identificación y la reflexión en torno a elementos y factores determinantes considerados por la TA , que son aplicables al mundo de la gestión universitaria (GU).: New concerns have been raised in Iberoamerica regarding the effectiveness of universities, especially in terms of their quality. It is an undisputed premise that the management of university governance is one of the determining factors to improve administrative tasks and, from there, academic duties. The purpose of this work is to make an analysis based on the Agency Theory (AT) as an estimate that may help detect and correct management problems in university governance, understanding that it is a theoretical drift and not a doctrinal one. In order to achieve this purpose, more than a hundred texts and papers published in internationally recognized academic journals were reviewed. As relevant findings, it is possible to highlight the identification and reflection about determining elements and factors considered by the AT, which are applicable to the world of university management (GU, by its Spanish acronym

Medida de autocontrol motor en tiradores de esgrima mediante el Tapping Test

El Tapping Test es una prueba neurológica habitual en las evaluaciones de los equipos nacionales de Cuba. Nuestro objetivo fue medir el autocontrol motor con esta prueba y su respuesta psicofisiológica en deportistas de la selección nacional de esgrima de Cuba. Comparando dos versiones del Tapping Test: modo 1 (habitual de lápiz-papel) y modo 2 (versión propuesta ejecutando acción técnica con el arma). Fueron 12 participantes (Medad = 22.19 años, DE = 3.50 años). Se utilizó un equipo de registro psicofisiológico inalámbrico (Biofeedback 2000). Los resultados, indican un autocontrol motor, siendo el modo 1 significativo F(1,10) = 44.29, p < .001; ya que la cantidad de toques o golpes fueron coherentes de acuerdo al ritmo de ejecución. El modo 2 tuvo una motilidad o aceleración significativa en las diferentes fases de la prueba F(1.58,15.8) = 8.14, p = .006, además mostró un mayor nivel de activación psicofisiológica. Este grupo de esgrimistas de alto nivel a pesar del incremento en la activación mostraron un autocontrol motor, ya que controlaron su movimiento de acuerdo al ritmo que se pedía (modo 1).The Tapping Test is a common neurological means of evaluating Cuba's national teams. Our objective was to assess self-control of motor abilities and the athletes' psychophysiological response by comparing two versions of the tapping test: mode 1 (normal pencil and paper) and mode 2 (technical action with the épée). The participants were made up of 12 athletes from the Cuban National Fencing Team (Mage = 22.19 years, SD = 3.50 years). We used wireless psychophysiological recording equipment (Biofeedback 2000). The results show self-control of motor abilities, mode 1 being significant F(1,10) = 44.29, p < .001 as the number of touches or hits was consistent with the execution rate. Mode 2 showed a motility or significant acceleration in the different phases of the test F(1.586, 15.85) = 8146, p = .006, plus a higher level of psychophysiological activation. This high-ranking group of fencers demonstrated self-control of their motor abilities despite increased activation, controlling their movements to match the requested pace (mode 1)

Influence of the IL17A locus in giant cell arteritis susceptibility

Objective: Different lines of evidence have highlighted the role of IL-17A in the inflammatory process occurring in giant cell arteritis (GCA). The aim of the present study was to assess whether the IL17A locus influences GCA susceptibility and its clinical subphenotypes. Methods: We carried out a large meta-analysis including a total of 1266 biopsy-proven GCA patients and 3779 healthy controls from four European populations (Spain, Italy, Germany and Norway). Five IL17A polymorphisms (rs4711998, rs8193036, rs3819024, rs2275913 and rs7747909) were selected by tagging and genotyped using TaqMan assays. Allelic combination and dependency tests were also performed. Results: In the pooled analysis, two of the five analysed polymorphisms showed evidence of association with GCA (rs2275913: PMH=1.85E−03, OR=1.17 (1.06-1.29); rs7747909: PMH=8.49E-03, OR=1.15 (1.04-1.27)). A clear trend of association was also found for the rs4711998 variant (PMH=0.059, OR=1.11 (1.00-1.23)). An independent effect of rs2275913 and rs4711998 was evident by conditional regression analysis. In addition, the haplotype harbouring the risk alleles better explained the observed association than the polymorphisms independently (likelihood p value <10−05). Conclusions: Polymorphisms within the IL17A locus show a novel association with GCA. This finding supports the relevant role of the Th17 cells in this vasculitis pathophysiology

Dietary diversity and nutritional adequacy among an older Spanish population with metabolic syndrome in the PREDIMED-Plus study: a cross-sectional analysis

Dietary guidelines emphasize the importance of a varied diet to provide an adequate nutrient intake. However, an older age is often associated with consumption of monotonous diets that can be nutritionally inadequate, increasing the risk for the development or progression of diet-related chronic diseases, such as metabolic syndrome (MetS). To assess the association between dietary diversity (DD) and nutrient intake adequacy and to identify demographic variables associated with DD, we cross-sectionally analyzed baseline data from the PREDIMED-Plus trial: 6587 Spanish adults aged 55-75 years, with overweight/obesity who also had MetS. An energy-adjusted dietary diversity score (DDS) was calculated using a 143-item validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Nutrient inadequacy was defined as an intake below 2/3 of the dietary reference intake (DRI) forat least four of 17 nutrients proposed by the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between DDS and the risk of nutritionally inadequate intakes. In the higher DDS quartile there were more women and less current smokers. Compared with subjects in the highest DDS quartile, those in the lowest DDS quartile had a higher risk of inadequate nutrient intake: odds ratio (OR) = 28.56 (95% confidence interval (CI) 20.80-39.21). When we estimated food varietyfor each of the food groups, participants in the lowest quartile had a higher risk of inadequate nutrient intake for the groups of vegetables, OR = 14.03 (95% CI 10.55-18.65), fruits OR = 11.62 (95% CI 6.81-19.81), dairy products OR = 6.54 (95% CI 4.64-9.22) and protein foods OR = 6.60 (95% CI 1.96-22.24). As DDS decreased, the risk of inadequate nutrients intake rose. Given the impact of nutrient intake adequacy on the prevention of non-communicable diseases, health policies should focus on the promotion of a healthy varied diet, specifically promoting the intake of vegetables and fruit among population groups with lower DDS such as men, smokers or widow(er)s

A Large-Scale Genetic Analysis Reveals a Strong Contribution of the HLA Class II Region to Giant Cell Arteritis Susceptibility

We conducted a large-scale genetic analysis on giant cell arteritis (GCA), a polygenic immune-mediated vasculitis. A case-control cohort, comprising 1,651 case subjects with GCA and 15,306 unrelated control subjects from six different countries of European ancestry, was genotyped by the Immunochip array. We also imputed HLA data with a previously validated imputation method to perform a more comprehensive analysis of this genomic region. The strongest association signals were observed in the HLA region, with rs477515 representing the highest peak (p = 4.05 × 10−40, OR = 1.73). A multivariate model including class II amino acids of HLA-DRβ1 and HLA-DQα1 and one class I amino acid of HLA-B explained most of the HLA association with GCA, consistent with previously reported associations of classical HLA alleles like HLA-DRB1∗04. An omnibus test on polymorphic amino acid positions highlighted DRβ1 13 (p = 4.08 × 10−43) and HLA-DQα1 47 (p = 4.02 × 10−46), 56, and 76 (both p = 1.84 × 10−45) as relevant positions for disease susceptibility. Outside the HLA region, the most significant loci included PTPN22 (rs2476601, p = 1.73 × 10−6, OR = 1.38), LRRC32 (rs10160518, p = 4.39 × 10−6, OR = 1.20), and REL (rs115674477, p = 1.10 × 10−5, OR = 1.63). Our study provides evidence of a strong contribution of HLA class I and II molecules to susceptibility to GCA. In the non-HLA region, we confirmed a key role for the functional PTPN22 rs2476601 variant and proposed other putative risk loci for GCA involved in Th1, Th17, and Treg cell function

Centrality evolution of the charged-particle pseudorapidity density over a broad pseudorapidity range in Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=2.76TeV

Peer reviewe

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Carretera San Joaquín-Soldados estudio de su Rectificación y Ensanchamiento

La presente tesis presenta la manera con la que se maneja cada uno de los criterios para poder realizar la rectificación y ensanchamiento de una vía ya existente, en este caso es la vía San Joaquín-Soldados; razón por la que se hace un estudio detallado del tráfico que se estima va a circular por dicha vía, pasando luego a realizar el trabajo topográfico y darle todas las características geométricas a la vía, por último se puede ver cuales son los criterios que se deben tomar en cuenta para obtener un presupuesto para la obra.Ingeniero CivilCuenc