Metalinguistic activity in a collaborative writing task in Primary Education

Diversos estudios destacan el valor de la actividad metalingüística que se genera en tareas de escritura colaborativa para el desarrollo de la competencia escrita del alumnado. Sin embargo, pocos la han analizado en el contexto educativo de primaria. Este artículo investiga el contenido de la actividad metalingüística que nueve parejas de 5º curso (10-11 años) generan en las fases de preescritura, escritura y revisión de la producción colaborativa de una fábula tras una intervención didáctica sobre este género textual. Para ello, se identificaron los episodios metalingüísticos generados en las interacciones orales, y se analizó su contenido y su frecuencia. Los resultados muestran que la mayor parte de los episodios se refiere a aspectos textuales y mecánicos, y que su contenido varía de acuerdo al objetivo propio de cada fase de la tarea: la organización textual en la fase de preescritura, y la corrección, meramente ortográfica, en la fase de revisión. Los resultados obtenidos se discuten en relación con los efectos de la intervención didáctica, de la madurez cognitiva del alumnado y del tipo de corrección habitual en la escuela. Finalmente, se ofrecen algunas recomendaciones didácticas.Several studies have underscored the importance of the metalinguistic activity generated in collaborative writing tasks for the development of students' writing competence. However, few of them have analyzed it in primary education contexts. This paper investigates the focus of the metalinguistic activity generated by nine pairs of fifth graders (10-11 years-old) in the prewriting, writing and revision stages of the collaborative production of a fable after a teaching intervention about this genre. To this aim, the episodes produced in the oral interactions were identified and analyzed in terms of focus and frequency. Results show that most episodes deal with textual and mechanical aspects, and that their focus varies according to the aims of the different stages of the task: text organization in the prewriting stage, and correction -focused merely on spelling- in the revision stage. The results obtained are discussed in relation to the effects of the intervention, the students' cognitive maturity and the kind of correction usually made at school. Pedagogical recommendations are also given

Do written plans determine texts' quality in primary school? An analysis of drafts and final texts in a collaborative writing task

Introducción: se ha observado que el uso de procedimientos de registro escrito durante la planificación previa redunda positivamente en la calidad de los textos escritos por alumnado adolescente y adulto, pero no en los realizados por alumnado de primaria. El presente trabajo pretende contribuir al conocimiento sobre el uso de procedimientos de planificación escrita por parte de alumnado de primaria y, especialmente, sobre su relación con la calidad de sus producciones finales, aportando datos procedentes de una tarea de escritura colaborativa de textos expositivo-argumentativos. Método: los participantes en el estudio fueron 66 estudiantes de 5º de primaria de dos centros españoles que produjeron un texto en parejas. Se analizaron, en primer lugar, los borradores para observar si el alumnado utilizó algún procedimiento de planificación escrita, y, en su caso, determinar su nivel de complejidad. En segundo lugar, se evaluó la calidad de los textos finales mediante una rúbrica y se cuantificó el número de ideas incluidas en ellos para comprobar si se observaban diferencias estadísticamente significativas en función de si el alumnado había empleado o no un procedimiento escrito de planificación previa. Resultados: los resultados muestran que la mayor parte del alumnado emplea un procedimiento escrito de planificación de nivel medio. Por otro lado, si bien el análisis estadístico muestra que no hay relación entre el uso o no uso de procedimientos de planificación y la calidad de los textos, el número de ideas contenidas en los textos finales es significativamente superior cuando se emplean técnicas de planificación. Discusión: en línea con otros estudios, se observa que el uso de procedimientos de planificación previa es un proceso emergente en estas edades que, si bien contribuye a enriquecer el contenido de los textos finales, no siempre redunda positivamente en la calidad de estos, por lo que debe trabajarse explícitamente en las aulas.Introduction: it has been observed that the use of written pre-planning strategies has a positive effect on the quality of final texts composed by teenage and adult students, but not on those produced by primary school children. By providing evidence from a collaborative writing task, this paper aims to contribute to existent knowledge about the use that primary school children make of written pre-planning strategies and its relation to the quality of the texts produced. Method: participants were sixty-six 5th graders from two Spanish schools who wrote an expository-argumentative text in pairs. First, we analyzed the drafts to observe whether students used written pre-planning strategies and, if so, we determined their complexity level. Second, we evaluated the quality of the final texts using a rubric and quantified the number of ideas they contained to search for statistically significant differences according to whether pre-planning strategies had been used or not. Results: results show that most students used a medium-level strategy. The statistical analysis showed no relationship between the quality of the final texts and the use of written pre-planning strategies. However, final texts written by students using these strategies contained significantly more ideas. Discussion: in line with other studies, we observe that the use of written pre-planning strategies is an emerging process at this age. When used, these strategies do not always have a positive effect on the quality of final texts but they do enrich their content. Therefore, they should be explicitly taught in class

Biomarkers of Venous Thromboembolism Recurrence after Discontinuation of Low Molecular Weight Heparin Treatment for Cancer-Associated Thrombosis (HISPALIS-Study)

The most appropriate duration of anticoagulant treatment for cancer-associated venous thromboembolism (CAT) remains unclear. We have conducted a prospective multicenter study in CAT patients with more than 6 months of anticoagulant treatment to predict the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) recurrence after anticoagulation discontinuation. Blood samples were obtained when patients stopped the anticoagulation, at 21 days and at 90 days. In each sample we assessed different coagulation-related biomarkers: D-dimer (DD), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), P-selectin (PS), phospholipids, soluble tissue factor, factor VIII and the thrombin generation test. It was evaluated 325 CAT patients and 166 patients were included in the study, mean age 64 ± 17 years. VTE recurrence until 6 months after stopping anticoagulation treatment was 9.87% [95% confidence interval (CI): 6–15]. The biomarkers sub-distribution hazard ratios were 6.32 for ratio DD basal/DD 21 days > 2 (95% CI: 1.82–21.90), 6.36 for hs-CRP > 4.5 (95% CI: 1.73–23.40) and 5.58 for PS > 40 (95% CI: 1.46–21.30) after 21 days of stopping anticoagulation. This is the first study that has identified the DD ratio, hs-CRP and PS as potential biomarkers of VTE recurrence in cancer patients after the discontinuation of anticoagulation treatment. A risk-adapted strategy may allow the identification of the optimal time to withdraw the anticoagulation in each CAT patientmThis research was funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III, grant number (PI15/01085; PI18/01640, PI20/00075), Sociedad Española de Trombosis y Hemostasia; Fundación Respira, grant number (140/2013), Fundación Neumosur, grant number (5/2013) and the LEO Pharma Research Foundation. Partial funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga

Estudio de la cavidad celómica de la Pogona vitticeps mediante técnicas convencionales y avanzadas de diagnóstico por imagen

En este proyecto de innovación y mejora de la calidad docente se ha llevado a cabo un estudio de correlación de la anatomía de la cavidad celómica de la Pogona vitticeps con diferentes técnicas de diagnóstico por imagen, tanto convencionales, como avanzadas

Cannabinoids reduce ErbB2-driven breast cancer progression through Akt inhibition.

RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are.BACKGROUND: ErbB2-positive breast cancer is characterized by highly aggressive phenotypes and reduced responsiveness to standard therapies. Although specific ErbB2-targeted therapies have been designed, only a small percentage of patients respond to these treatments and most of them eventually relapse. The existence of this population of particularly aggressive and non-responding or relapsing patients urges the search for novel therapies. The purpose of this study was to determine whether cannabinoids might constitute a new therapeutic tool for the treatment of ErbB2-positive breast tumors. We analyzed their antitumor potential in a well established and clinically relevant model of ErbB2-driven metastatic breast cancer: the MMTV-neu mouse. We also analyzed the expression of cannabinoid targets in a series of 87 human breast tumors. RESULTS: Our results show that both Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the most abundant and potent cannabinoid in marijuana, and JWH-133, a non-psychotropic CB2 receptor-selective agonist, reduce tumor growth, tumor number, and the amount/severity of lung metastases in MMTV-neu mice. Histological analyses of the tumors revealed that cannabinoids inhibit cancer cell proliferation, induce cancer cell apoptosis, and impair tumor angiogenesis. Cannabinoid antitumoral action relies, at least partially, on the inhibition of the pro-tumorigenic Akt pathway. We also found that 91% of ErbB2-positive tumors express the non-psychotropic cannabinoid receptor CB2. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these results provide a strong preclinical evidence for the use of cannabinoid-based therapies for the management of ErbB2-positive breast cancer

First Radiological Study of a Complete Dental Ontogeny Sequence of an Extinct Equid: Implications for Equidae Life History and Taphonomy

The sequence of cheek teeth mineralization, eruption, and replacement of an extinct horse species is here documented with radiological techniques for the first time thanks to the exceptional preservation of Hipparion sp. mandibles from Cerro de los Batallones (Madrid Basin, Spain). The sequence of dental ontogeny in mammals provides valuable insights about life history traits, such as the pace of growth, and about the mode of formation of fossiliferous assemblages. We have determined that the order of permanent cheek teeth mineralization and eruption of hipparionine horses is m1, m2, (p2, p3), p4, m3. Cheek teeth mineralization timing of hipparionine horses coincides with the one observed in modern equids. In turn, there are differences in the eruption timing of the p4 and m3 between horses belonging to the Anchitheriinae and Hipparionini compared to equids of the Equus genus that might be related to the shorter durability of the deciduous tooth dp4 in anchitheriine and hipparionine horses and, more broadly, to an increased durability of equid teeth through their evolutionary history. Based on the dental eruption sequence, hipparionine horses are slow-growing, long-living mammals. The Hipparion sp. assemblage from Batallones-10 conforms to an attritional model, as individuals more vulnerable to natural mortality predominate

Effects of systemic or local administration of mesenchymal stem cells from patients with osteoporosis or osteoarthritis on femoral fracture healing in a mouse model

The purpose of this study was to analyze the regenerative capacity of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in the treatment of fractures. MSCs extracted from patients with osteoporotic hip fractures or hip osteoarthritis undergoing hip replacement surgeries were cultured and injected into mice with femoral fracture. Two experimental models were established, one for the systemic administration of MSCs (n = 29) and another one for local administration (n = 30). Fracture consolidation was assessed by micro-CT and histology. The degree of radiological consolidation and corticalization was better with MSCs from osteoporosis than from osteoarthritis, being significant after systemic administration (p = 0.0302 consolidation; p = 0.0243 corticalization). The histological degree of consolidation was also better with MSCs from osteoporosis than from osteoarthritis. Differences in histological scores after systemic infusion were as follows: Allen, p = 0.0278; Huo, p = 0.3471; and Bone Bridge, p = 0.0935. After local administration at the fracture site, differences in histological scores were as follows: Allen, p = 0.0764; Huo, p = 0.0256; and Bone Bridge, p = 0.0012. As osteoporosis and control groups were similar, those differences depended on an inhibitory influence by MSCs from patients with osteoarthritis. In conclusion, we found an unexpected impairment of consolidation induced by MSCs from patients with osteoarthritis. However, MSCs from patients with osteoporosis compared favorably with cells from patients with osteoarthritis. In other words, based on this study and previous studies, MSCs from patients with osteoporosis do not appear to have worse bone-regenerating capabilities than MSCs from non-osteoporotic individuals of similar age.Funding: This work was supported by a grant from Instituto de Salud Carlos III [PI16-915], which can be cofounded by EU Feder funds. Acknowledgments: Álvaro del Real received support from the postdoctoral grant “Augusto González de Linares” of the University of Cantabria

Estudio de la cavidad celómica de la serpiente Python Regius mediantes distintas técnicas de diagnóstico por imagen

1. Estudiar la anatomía básica de la serpiente Python regius, mediante la observación de cadáveres y la disección ordenada de cada uno de sus aparatos y sistemas. 2. Fotografiar los distintos aparatos y sistemas, a fin de describir cada una de las vísceras presentes en la cavidad celómica. Estos datos serán la base del resto del trabajo. 2. Reseñar los distintos equipos de diagnóstico por imagen que se van a utilizar. 3. Describir la colocación correcta del animal en cada caso, a fin de obtener las mejores imágenes en el menor tiempo posible. Es importante para reducir los tiempos de anestesia cuando los datos obtenidos se apliquen en la clínica veterinaria. 4. Analizar e identificar los distintos sistemas viscerales en las imágenes obtenidas mediante las diferentes técnicas radiológicas. 5. Establecer la correspondencia entre dichas imágenes y aquellas obtenidas de la disección de cadáveres. 5. Comparar y combinar los resultados obtenidos, a fin de dotar al veterinario clínico de una herramienta útil en el ejercicio habitual de la profesión

Método sensible para monitorizar la migración de las células madre mesenquimales de la médula ósea en modelos murinos

Resumen: Objetivo: Las células madre mesenquimales (MSCs) son atractivas en la terapia regenerativa de patologías humanas. En los modelos murinos, en los que se trasplantan MSCs humanas, es muy importante poder distinguir el origen de las MSCs identificadas en los órganos de ratones. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar el rendimiento del análisis basado en PCR de secuencias Alu humanas para detectar ADN humano después de la infusión de células madre de médula ósea humana (hBMSCs) en ratones inmunodeficientes. Material y método: Las hBMSCs se obtuvieron de la cabeza femoral de pacientes sometidos a cirugía de reemplazo de cadera. Se infundieron 106 hBMSCs por vía intravenosa mediante inyección en el seno retro‐orbitario de ratones NOD/SCID. Después se evaluó la presencia de ADN humano en pulmón, hígado y hueso. Resultados: En mezclas de ADN in vitro, el ADN humano se detectó fácilmente con una buena relación logarítmica‐lineal. De manera similar, cuando se mezclaron osteoblastos humanos y de ratón, se detectaron fácilmente 1‐10 células humanas entre 105 células de ratón. Asimismo, se detectó el ADN humano en los pulmones 1 y 7 días después de las infusiones celulares en ratones NOD/SCID. Sin embargo, el ADN humano se detectó de manera inconsistente en el hígado y los huesos. Conclusión: La detección de secuencias Alu es un procedimiento eficaz para detectar ADN humano. Los resultados confirman que la mayoría de las hBMSCs inyectadas por vía intravenosa quedan atrapadas en los pulmones. Por lo tanto, de cara al tratamiento de trastornos esqueléticos, se necesitan procedimientos para aumentar la migración de dichas células al hueso