Walking as a cultural act and a profit for the landscape. A case study in the Iberian Peninsula

[EN] Walking as a means of travel, when done voluntarily, becomes a cultural act that can have a beneficial effect both for the people who carry out the routes and for the space itself that is walked on. The fact of moving at a slow speed allow us to recover a more appropriate pace to enjoy the landscape, to reconnect with nature and with the position of human in the world, while improving our health. In contemporary society, some cultural tourist routes have become successful destinations, with the continuous arrival of thousands of visitors throughout the year. Thus, the historical cultural route Way of St. James has become a globally successful cultural tourism product. Close to this destination, the Ribeira Sacra, that has been recently designated by the regional government as a Cultural Landscape, with the intention of preserving its historical legacy, may be in the future a privileged destination in Galicia for walking. The research carried out allows us to ensure that this fact, taking long walks following routes with a rich cultural content, has a positive impact on the space from two different processes that are reinforced as the routes become more popular. First, from the recovery and promotion of an alternative communication network between different places. And second, through a series of laws and regulations that protect historic trails and adjacent landscapesSIPublicación en abierto financiada por el Consorcio de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Castilla y León (BUCLE), con cargo al Programa Operativo 2014ES16RFOP009 FEDER 2014-2020 DE CASTILLA Y LEÓN, Actuación:20007-CL - Apoyo Consorcio BUCL

Connexin43 recruits PTEN and Csk to inhibit c-Src activity in glioma cells and astrocytes

[EN] Connexin43 (Cx43), the major protein forming gap junctions in astrocytes, is reduced in high-grade gliomas, where its ectopic expression exerts important effects, including the inhibition of the proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase Src (c-Src). In this work we aimed to investigate the mechanism responsible for this effect. The inhibition of c-Src requires phosphorylation at tyrosine 527 mediated by C-terminal Src kinase (Csk) and dephosphorylation at tyrosine 416 mediated by phosphatases, such as phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN). Our results showed that the antiproliferative effect of Cx43 is reduced when Csk and PTEN are silenced in glioma cells, suggesting the involvement of both enzymes. Confocal microscopy and immunoprecipitation assays confirmed that Cx43, in addition to c-Src, binds to PTEN and Csk in glioma cells transfected with Cx43 and in astrocytes. Pull-down assays showed that region 266–283 in Cx43 is sufficient to recruit c-Src, PTEN and Csk and to inhibit the oncogenic activity of c-Src. As a result of c-Src inhibition, PTEN was increased with subsequent inactivation of Akt and reduction of proliferation of human glioblastoma stem cells. We conclude that the recruitment of Csk and PTEN to the region between residues 266 and 283 within the C-terminus of Cx43 leads to c-Src inhibition

Rapid enhanced MM3-COPRO ELISA for detection of fasciola coproantigens

ELISA-based methods of detecting Fasciola cathepsins in feces are powerful techniques for diagnosing infections by F. hepatica and F. gigantica. In the last decade, the in-house MM3-COPRO ELISA and its commercial version BIO K 201 (BIO X Diagnostics, Belgium) have been recognized as useful tools for detecting early infections by such trematodes and for monitoring the efficacy of anthelmintic treatments in human and animal species, as they provide some advantages over classic fecal egg counts. However, the sensitivity of MM3- COPRO ELISA can sometimes be compromised by the high variability in the concentration of cathepsins in fecal samples throughout the biological cycle of Fasciola (mainly in cattle) and by differences in the between-batch performance of peroxidase-labeled anti-mouse IgG polyclonal antibodies. To prevent such problems, we investigated whether the incorporation of a commercial streptavidin-polymerized horseradish peroxidase conjugate, in order to reveal bound biotinylated monoclonal antibody MM3, can improve the sensitivity of the MM3-COPRO ELISA. We observed that inclusion of this reagent shifted the previous detection limit of the assay from 0.6 ng/mL to 150 pg/mL and that the modified test is able to identify infection in cows harboring only one fluke. Moreover, we demonstrated that maximal OD values can be achieved with short incubations (30 min each step) at RT with shaking, rather than standard incubations, which significantly accelerates the diagnostic procedure. Finally, we did not find a significant correlation between coproantigen concentration and parasite burden in cattle, which may be due to the low parasite burden (1–10 adult flukes) of the animals used in the present study. As the usefulness of the classic MM3-COPRO test for detecting animal and human infections has already been demonstrated, it is expected that the improvements reported in this study will add new insights into the diagnosis and control of fasciolosisWe have previously reported how the combined use of mAb MM3 with polyclonal antibodies obtained from rabbit immunized with Fasciola hepatica excretory-antigens led to the development of the in-house MM3-COPRO ELISA and its commercial version BIO K 201 (BIO X Diagnostics, Belgium), which are widely used to detect human and animal infections caused by F. hepatica. After more than a decade in use, both tests have proven to be useful tools for specifically detecting Fasciola infections, although it has also been found that: i) the conditions of use of the commercial test in some field studies did not enable the sensitivity obtained with the in-house test to be reached, and ii) the batches of the secondary reagent (peroxidase-labeled anti-mouse antibodies) currently available for use in the in-house test do not perform the same as previous batches. To solve these problems, we provide data showing that the incorporation of an enhancement system consisting of streptavidin-polymerized horseradish peroxidase conjugate greatly improved the sensitivity of the MM3-COPRO ELISA and enabled reduction of the incubation time. These modifications enabled the detectability of the assay to be 150 pg/mL, thus enabling detection of infection in animals harboring only one flukeThis work was funded by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain, Grants AGL2011- 30563-C02/C03; Xunta de Galicia, Spain, Grant GPC2014/058; and the European Fund for Regional Development (FEDER). VMS holds a predoctoral fellowship from the Spanish Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte (Programa de Formación del Profesorado Universitario, AP2010-5808) and RAOM is recipient of a fellowship from the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Programa de Formación de Personal Investigador, BES-2012- 060270)S

Conocimiento y creencias sobre COVID-19 y su relación con las barreras de aprendizaje

Bajo la premisa de que es importante continuar sensibilizando y educando a la población sobre cómo prevenir y controlar posibles pandemias futuras como lo fue la del COVID-19, así como promover información precisa y basada en evidencia sobre la enfermedad, este artículo se enfocó en identificar los constructos que conforman la pandemia y su relación con las barreras de aprendizaje en las áreas de competencias familiares y escolares en estudiantes universitarios. La metodología utilizada fue cuantitativa, con un diseño transversal, descriptivo y correlacional. Se aplicaron 320 encuestas durante la tercera fase de la pandemia de COVID-19 utilizando un muestreo no probabilístico por conveniencia, seleccionando los elementos en función de su accesibilidad. Los análisis estadísticos realizados en este estudio validan que existe un buen nivel de conocimiento sobre la pandemia de COVID-19, sin embargo, se encontró un alto grado de barreras de aprendizaje en relación al ámbito escolar; en menor medida se observaron barreras de aprendizaje en el ámbito familiar. El análisis de correlación de Pearson reveló una relación significativa y directamente proporcional entre las creencias sobre la COVID-19 y las barreras de aprendizaje familiares y escolares. Además, el análisis factorial confirmatorio demuestra un modelo con buen ajuste conformado por cuatro factores. Estas relaciones entre los constructos analizados ofrecen información relevante para el diseño de estrategias y acciones que promuevan un aprendizaje efectivo

How Different Cooking Methods Affect the Phenolic Composition of Sweet Potato for Human Consumption (Ipomea batata (L.) Lam)

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the functional components of sweet potato because of its nutritional and medicinal value. The aim of this study is to analyse how much sweet potato phenolic compounds composition (derived from caffeoylquinic acids) varies as a result of cooking. Traditional techniques such as: boiling, oven roasting and more recent processing techniques such as microwave cooking were tested. Three sweet potato varieties were cooked for different periods of time and under different conditions. Ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) was used to extract the compounds of interest and then, a chemometric tool such as Box-Behnken design (BBD) was successfully used to evaluate and optimise the most influential factors in the extraction, i.e., temperature, solvent composition and sample-to-solvent ratio. The optimal settings for UAE were: solvent 100% methanol, a temperature of 39.4 degrees C and a mass/volume ratio of 0.5 g per 10 mL solvent. Oven roasting of sweet potatoes resulted in increased levels of caffeoylquinic acids, whereas prolonged cooking times in water resulted in decreasing levels of the same.This work has been supported by the project "EQC2018-005135-P" (Equipment for liquid chromatography by means of mass spectrometry and ion chromatography) of the State Subprogram of Research Infrastructures and Technical Scientific Equipment

Condiciones y resultados del teletrabajo en profesores universitarios

Objetivo: Evaluar las condiciones laborales y los resultados del teletrabajo, en un grupo de profesores de una institución de la educación superior en Cuba. Métodos y técnicas: Se aplicó como instrumento un cuestionario de teletrabajo elaborado por especialistas de la Facultad de Psicología de la Universidad de La Habana, Cuba, a una muestra representativa de 43 trabajadores y directivos. Para el procesamiento de los datos se utilizaron: frecuencias absolutas y relativas, t de Student y Chi cuadrado, a través del paquete estadístico IBM SPSS Statistics v 22 para Windows Principales resultados: Las condiciones laborales fueron valoradas como positivas, con destaque en la planificación y organización del trabajo, la claridad de los objetivos y sus plazos de cumplimiento; no obstante, la organización no facilitó los medios para el trabajo a distancia y no ofreció una capacitación previa sobre esta modalidad. Los resultados del teletrabajo también fueron favorables; mejoraron las competencias de los teletrabajadores en el empleo de las tecnologías de la información y las comunicaciones, la gestión de la información, su autonomía y autocontrol y la administración del tiempo; aunque se evidenció como negativo un incremento de la cantidad de horas dedicadas a la actividad laboral, el ritmo y volumen de trabajo. Conclusiones: Los teletrabajadores reconocieron los beneficios de esta modalidad y valoraron positivamente las condiciones laborales y los resultados del teletrabajo; aunque se mostraron algunas dificultades que afectan su salud laboral. No existieron diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre la valoración de trabajadores y directivos. Se ofrecieron recomendaciones para el perfeccionamiento del teletrabajo

In-plate recapturing of a dual-tagged recombinant Fasciola antigen (FhLAP) by a monoclonal antibody (US9) prevents non-specific binding in ELISA

Recombinant proteins expressed in E. coli are frequently purified by immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC). By means of this technique, tagged proteins containing a polyhistidine sequence can be obtained up to 95% pure in a single step, but some host proteins also bind with great affinity to metal ions and contaminate the sample. A way to overcome this problem is to include a second tag that is recognized by a preexistent monoclonal antibody (mAb) in the gene encoding the target protein, allowing further purification. With this strategy, the recombinant protein can be directly used as target in capture ELISA using plates sensitized with the corresponding mAb. As a proof of concept, in this study we engineered a Trichinella-derived tag (MTFSVPIS, recognized by mAb US9) into a His-tagged recombinant Fasciola antigen (rFhLAP) to make a new chimeric recombinant protein (rUS9-FhLAP), and tested its specificity in capture and indirect ELISAs with sera from sheep and cattle. FhLAP was selected since it was previously reported to be immunogenic in ruminants and is expressed in soluble form in E. coli, which anticipates a higher contamination by host proteins than proteins expressed in inclusion bodies. Our results showed that a large number of sera from non-infected ruminants (mainly cattle) reacted in indirect ELISA with rUS9-FhLAP after single-step purification by IMAC, but that this reactivity disappeared testing the same antigen in capture ELISA with mAb US9. These results demonstrate that the 6XHis and US9 tags can be combined when double purification of recombinant proteins is required.This work was supported by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Spain) [grant number AGL2011-30563-C03 and AGL2014-57125R], Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (INIA, Spain) [grants numbers RTA2017-00010-C02-01 and RTA2017-00010-C02-02] and the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria (Xunta de Galicia, Spain) [grant number ED431B 2017/18]. RAOM holds a predoctoral fellowship from the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Programa de Formación de Personal Investigador). VMS is supported by a contract under the grant ED431B 2017/18. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.S

Condiciones y resultados del teletrabajo en profesores universitarios

Objetivo: Evaluar las condiciones laborales y los resultados del teletrabajo, en un grupo de profesores de una institución de la educación superior en Cuba. Métodos  y  técnicas:  Se  aplicó  como  instrumento  un  cuestionario  de  teletrabajo elaborado  por  especialistas  de  la  Facultad  de  Psicología  de  la  Universidad  de  La Habana, Cuba, a una muestra representativa de 43 trabajadores y directivos. Para el procesamiento de los datos se utilizaron: frecuencias absolutas y relativas, t de Student y  Chi  cuadrado,  a  través  del  paquete  estadístico  IBM  SP SS  Statistics  v  22  para Windows Principales  resultados:  Las condiciones laborales fueron valoradas como positivas, con destaque en la planificación y organización del trabajo, la claridad de los objetivos y sus plazos de cumplimiento; no obstante, la organización no facilitó los medios para el trabajo  a  distancia  y no  ofreció  una  capacitación previa sobre esta modalidad. Los resultados del teletrabajo también fueron favorables; mejoraron las competencias de los teletrabajadores   en   el   empleo   de   las   tecnologías   de   la   información   y   las comunicaciones, la gestión de la información, su autonomía y autocontrol y la administración del tiempo; aunque  se  evidenció  como  negativo  un incremento de la  cantidad  de  horas  dedicadas  a  la  actividad  laboral, el ritmo  y volumen de  trabajo. Conclusiones:  Los teletrabajadores reconocieron los beneficios de esta modalidad y valoraron  positivamente  las  condiciones  laborales  y  los  resultados  del  teletrabajo; aunque se mostraron algunas dificultades que afectan su salud laboral. No existieron diferencias   estadísticamente   significativas   entre   la   valoración  de   trabajadores  y directivos. Se ofrecieron recomendaciones para el perfeccionamiento del teletrabajo.

Does evidence support the high expectations placed in precision medicine? A bibliographic review

Background: Precision medicine is the Holy Grail of interventions that aretailored to a patient’s individual characteristics.  However, the conventional design of randomized trials assumes that each individual benefits by the same amount. Methods: We reviewed parallel trials with quantitative outcomes published in2004, 2007, 2010 and 2013. We collected baseline and final standard deviations of the main outcome. We assessed homoscedasticity by comparing the outcome variability between treated and control arms. Results: The review provided 208 articles with enough information to conductthe analysis. At the end of the study, 113 (54%, 95% CI 47 to 61%) papers find less variability in the treated arm. The adjusted point estimate of the mean ratio (treated to control group) of the outcome variances is 0.89 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.97). Conclusions: Some variance inflation was observed in just 1 out of 6 interventions, suggesting the need for further eligibility criteria to tailor precision medicine. Surprisingly, the variance was more often smaller in the intervention group, suggesting, if anything, a reduced role for precision medicine.  Homoscedasticity is a useful tool for assessing whether or not the premise of constant effect is reasonable.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

NOD1 deficiency promotes an imbalance of thyroid hormones and microbiota homeostasis in mice fed high fat diet

The contribution of the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain protein NOD1 to obesity has been investigated in mice fed a high fat diet (HFD). Absence of NOD1 accelerates obesity as early as 2 weeks after feeding a HFD. The obesity was due to increases in abdominal and inguinal adipose tissues. Analysis of the resting energy expenditure showed an impaired function in NOD1-deficient animals, compatible with an alteration in thyroid hormone homeostasis. Interestingly, free thyroidal T4 increased in NOD1-deficient mice fed a HFD and the expression levels of UCP1 in brown adipose tissue were significantly lower in NOD1-deficient mice than in the wild type animals eating a HFD, thus contributing to the observed adiposity in NOD1-deficient mice. Feeding a HFD resulted in an alteration of the proinflammatory profile of these animals, with an increase in the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the liver and in the white adipose tissue, and an elevation of the circulating levels of TNF-α. In addition, alterations in the gut microbiota in NOD1-deficient mice correlate with increased vulnerability of their ecosystem to the HFD challenge and affect the immune-metabolic phenotype of obese mice. Together, the data are compatible with a protective function of NOD1 against low-grade inflammation and obesity under nutritional conditions enriched in saturated lipids. Moreover, one of the key players of this early obesity onset is a dysregulation in the metabolism and release of thyroid hormones leading to reduced energy expenditure, which represents a new role for these hormones in the metabolic actions controlled by NOD1.This work was supported by Grants SAF2017-82436R, AGL2017-88801-P and SAF2016-75004R from MINECO/AEI/FEDER/EU, S2017/BMD-3686 from Comunidad de Madrid, CIVP18A3864 from Fundación Ramón Areces and CIBERCV and CIBERHED (funded by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III) and Fondos FEDER.Peer reviewe