Stellar Populations, Bars and Secular Evolution in Late-Type Galaxies

We have done a robust statistical analysis of UBV color profiles of 257 Sbc barred and unbarred galaxies. We found that there is an excess of barred galaxies among the objects with null or positive (bluish inward) color gradients, which seems to indicate that bars act as a mechanism of homogenization of the stellar population along galaxies. Moreover, the relationship found between total and bulge colors shows that, in the process of homogenization, the stellar population of bulges are getting bluer, whereas the total color of galaxies remains the same. These characteristics are expected in a secular evolutionary scenario, and seem incompatible with both the monolithic and the hierarchical scenarios for spiral galaxy formation.Comment: 2 pages, 1 table, no figures. To appear in ASP Conference Series, "Galaxy Disks and Disk Galaxies", J. G. Funes S. J. and E. M. Corsini, ed

The Circumnuclear Ring of Ionized Gas in NGC3593

We present the results of narrow-band Halpha+NII imaging of the early-type spiral NGC3593 in combination with a study of the flux radial profiles of the NII (lambda: 654.80, 658.34 nm), Halpha, and SII (lambda: 671.65, 673.08 nm) emission lines along its major axis. The galaxy is known to contain two counterrotating stellar discs of different size and luminosity. We find that the Halpha emission mainly derives from a small central region of 57 arcsec x 25 arcsec. It consists of a filamentary pattern with a central ring. This has a diameter of about 17 arcsec (~ 0.6/h kpc) and it contributes about half of the total Halpha flux. The ring is interpreted as the result of the interaction between the acquired retrograde gas which later formed the smaller counterrotating stellar disc and the pre-existing prograde gas of the galaxy.Comment: Accepted for pubblication in Astronomy and Astrophysics; one latex file (corsini.tex), and 2 encapsulated postscript figures (corsini_fig1.ps,corsini_fig2.ps). To be compiled with aa.cls latex2e macro style (pslatex option): 6 pages after latex compilatio

Los modelos de convivencia y autoridad en el ámbito educativo

Este texto se presentó como comunicación al II Congreso Internacional de Etnografía y Educación: Migraciones y Ciudadanías. Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, 5-8 Septiembre 2008En el aula el profesor ejerce un liderazgo que conlleva un cierto tipo de autoridad y, en el centro, el equipo directivo también lo hace. En ambos casos, el tipo de autoridad plantea o promueve un estilo de relaciones y una aplicación de las normas, que de una forma un poco simplificada, sería lo que llamamos convivencia. En el presente trabajo proponemos analizar los distintos modelos de convivencia y las relaciones de poder que se ejercen a través de éstos. Partimos del supuesto de que heredamos un modelo educativo autoritario en una sociedad que necesita formar a ciudadanos para vivir democráticamente. Tal principio es compartido por la mayoría de la comunidad educativa; sin embargo, en la práctica, permanecen en el profesorado creencias que imposibilitan la delegación de parte de su poder, lo que genera parte de la conflictividad a la que asistimos en la actualidad. Las últimas reformas educativas han puesto en evidencia la falta de recursos profesionales del profesorado para gestionar grupos diversos, desmotivados, que arrastran fracaso escolar año tras año, sin estrategias específicas para reconducirlos y que además rechazan el sistema escolar como resultado de la educación obligatoria. La buena gestión de la convivencia comprenderá la atención a los conflictos, la preocupación por la gestión de las relaciones interpersonales y la comunicación orientados al bienestar personal y grupal. Para ello aparecen, se crean y se experimentan nuevas figuras, recursos y actuaciones que persiguen soluciones que reduzcan la conflictividad y mejoren las relaciones desde un modelo que integre el marco normativo-punitivo pero que se enriquezcan con los aspectos más participativos y relacionales. Si bien esta línea de trabajo ha tenido un gran impacto a niveles de aula y de centro por los recursos y estrategias que aporta, aún carece de la suficiente reflexión teórica y metodológica. Por lo tanto, interesa aportar reflexión a la implementación de estas experiencias y a las prácticas que genera, así como los nuevos modelos de relación, de autoridad y de convivencia a los que puedan dar lugar; para ello se describirán las características y límites de cada modelo así como los conceptos más importantes vinculados a éstos. Este análisis lo haremos a partir de la información recogida en cursos de formación de profesores en temas de mejora de la convivencia escolar, desde el proceso de investigación-acción, además de la consulta de distintas fuentes teóricas

Mixed Early and Late-Type Properties in the Bar of NGC 6221: Evidence for Evolution along the Hubble Sequence?

Rotation curves and velocity dispersion profiles are presented for both the stellar and gaseous components along five different position angles (P.A.=5, 50, 95, 125 and 155 degrees) of the nearby barred spiral NGC 6221. The observed kinematics extends out to about 80" from the nucleus. Narrow and broad-band imaging is also presented. The radial profiles of the fluxes ratio [NII]/Halpha reveal the presence of a ring-like structure of ionized gas, with a radius of about 9" and a deprojected circular velocity of about 280 km/s. The analysis of the dynamics of the bar indicates this ring is related to the presence of an inner Lindblad resonance (ILR) at 1.3 kpc. NGC6221 is found to exhibit intermediate properties between those of the early-type barred galaxies: the presence of a gaseous ring at an ILR, the bar edge located between the ILR's and the corotation radius beyond the steep rising portion of the rotation curve, the dust-lane pattern, and those of the late-type galaxies: an almost exponential surface brightness profile, the presence of Halpha regions along all the bar, the spiral-arm pattern. It is consistent with scenarios of bar-induced evolution from later to earlier-type galaxies.Comment: 1 File ds7406.tar.gz which contains: one latex file (ds7406.tex), and 10 encsulated postscript figures (ds7406f**.eps). To be compiled with aa-l latex2e macro style. To be published in A&A Sup. Serie

Evaluation of dried amorphous ferric hydroxide CFH-12® as agent for binding bioavailable phosphorus in lake sediments

Metal hydroxides formed from aluminum (Al) and iron (Fe) salts can be used as phosphorus (P) adsorbents in lake restoration, but the application entails problems in low-alkaline lakes due to acid producing hydrolysis and potential formation of toxic metal ions. Therefore, we tested the potential of applying CFH-12® (Kemira) – a dried, amorphous Fe-oxide with no pH effect – in lake restoration. Since Fe3+ may become reduced in lake sed- iments and release both Fe2+ and any associated P we also evaluated the redox sensitivity of CFH-12® in com- parison with freshly formed Fe(OH)3. CFH-12® was added to undisturbed sediment cores from three Danish lakes relative to the size of their mobile P pool (molar Fe:PMobile dose ratio of ~10:1), and P and Fe fluxes across the sediment-water interface were compared with those from untreated cores and cores treated with freshly formed Fe(OH)3. Under anoxic conditions, we found that CFH-12® significantly reduced the P efflux from the sediments (by 43% in Lake Sønderby, 70% in Lake Hampen and 60% in Lake Hostrup) while the Fe 2+ efflux remained unchanged relative to the untreated cores. Cores treated with freshly formed Fe(OH)3 retained more P, but released significantly more Fe 2+ , indicating continued Fe3+ reduction. Finally, experiments with pure phases showed that CFH-12® adsorbed less P than freshly formed Fe(OH)3 in the short term, but was capable of adsorbing up to 70% of P adsorbed by Fe(OH)3 over 3 months. With product costs only 30% higher than Al salts we find that CFH-12® has potential for use in restoration of low-alkaline lakes.The study was supported by Junta de Andalucía (project P10-RNM- 6630, Spain), MINECO CTM (project 2013-46951-R, Spain) and by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Funding was also ob- tained from the Danish Centre for Lake Restoration (a Villum Centre of Excellence).The study was supported by Junta de Andalucía (project P10-RNM- 6630, Spain), MINECO CTM (project 2013-46951-R, Spain) and by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Funding was also ob- tained from the Danish Centre for Lake Restoration (a Villum Centre of Excellence)

The Use of Multivariate Analysis in Tropical Grass and Legume Seed Production in Cuban Regions

Seed production is an important activity in developing countries where pastures are the main source for animal feeding (Febles et al. 2003). Another outstanding aspect is the mathematical analysis used when a large number of species, varieties and ecotypes are used in the same study. The objective of this paper was to examine the use of multivariate analysis in studies on the effects of edaphoclimatic factors on seed production from tropical grasses and legumes

Oncogenic transformation of mesenchymal stem cells decreases Nrf2 expression favoring in vivo tumor growth and poorer survival

BACKGROUND: The transcription factor Nrf2 is a key regulator of the cellular antioxidant response, and its activation by chemoprotective agents has been proposed as a potential strategy to prevent cancer. However, activating mutations in the Nrf2 pathway have been found to promote tumorigenesis in certain models. Therefore, the role of Nrf2 in cancer remains contentious. METHODS: We employed a well-characterized model of stepwise human mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transformation and breast cancer cell lines to investigate oxidative stress and the role of Nrf2 during tumorigenesis. The Nrf2 pathway was studied by microarray analyses, qRT-PCR, and western-blotting. To assess the contribution of Nrf2 to transformation, we established tumor xenografts with transformed MSC expressing Nrf2 (n = 6 mice per group). Expression and survival data for Nrf2 in different cancers were obtained from GEO and TCGA databases. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS: We found an accumulation of reactive oxygen species during MSC transformation that correlated with the transcriptional down-regulation of antioxidants and Nrf2-downstream genes. Nrf2 was repressed in transformed MSC and in breast cancer cells via oncogene-induced activation of the RAS/RAF/ERK pathway. Furthermore, restoration of Nrf2 function in transformed cells decreased reactive oxygen species and impaired in vivo tumor growth (P = 0.001) by mechanisms that included sensitization to apoptosis, and a decreased hypoxic/angiogenic response through HIF-1α destabilization and VEGFA repression. Microarray analyses showed down-regulation of Nrf2 in a panel of human tumors and, strikingly, low Nrf2 expression correlated with poorer survival in patients with melanoma (P = 0.0341), kidney (P = 0.0203) and prostate (P = 0.00279) cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that oncogene-induced Nrf2 repression is an adaptive response for certain cancers to acquire a pro-oxidant state that favors cell survival and in vivo tumor growth