Efeitos agudos da restrição, choque e treinamento no labirinto elevado em T nos sistemas de noradrenalina e serotonina no córtex pré-frontal

The prefrontal cortex (PFC) participates in cognitive functions and stress regulation. Noradrenaline (NA) and serotonin (5-HT) levels in some regions of the central nervous system are modified by acute stress. The effects depend on the type of stressor and the time elapsed between the presence of the stressor and the assessment. The aims of the present study were to assess the acute effect of different stressors on NA and 5-HT activities in the PFC and its relation with corticosterone levels. Independent groups of male Wistar rats (250-280 g) were submitted to restraint, footshock or training in the elevated T-maze (ETMT). The animals were sacrificed immediately (T0) or one hour (T1) after stress exposure. An untreated group sacrificed concurrently with treated animals was included as control. Samples of the PFC were dissected and the concentration of NA, 5-HT and their metabolites were measured by HPLC. Corticosterone levels were measured in serum. None of the treatments modified NA levels in the PFC. Animals exposed to footshock or ETMT showed significantly higher concentrations of 5-HT at T0. Restraint and footshock treatments were associated with higher corticosterone levels at T0 and T1 after the respective treatment. Taken together the results show that in the PFC, the noradrenergic and serotonergic systems, and the corticosterone levels respond in different ways to different stressors.La corteza prefrontal (CPF) participa en las funciones cognitivas y la regulación del estrés. Las concentraciones de noradrenalina (NA) y serotonina (5-HT) en algunas regiones en el sistema nervioso central son modificadas por el estrés agudo. El efecto depende del estresor y del tiempo que transcurra entre el estresor y la evaluación. El objetivo del presente estudio fue evaluar el efecto agudo de diferentes estresores en la actividad de la NA y 5-HT en la CPF y su relación con los niveles de corticosterona. Grupos independientes de ratas (250-270 g) fueron sometidos a restricción, choque o entrenamiento en el laberinto elevado en T (ELET). Los animales fueron sacrificados inmediatamente (T0) o una hora (T1) después de la exposición al estrés. Un grupo no tratado, sacrificado al mismo tiempo que los animales tratados, se incluyó como control. Las muestras de la CPF fueron disecadas y la concentración de NA, 5-HT y sus metabolitos fue detectada por la técnica de HPLC. Las concentraciones de corticosterona fueron medidas en el suero. Ninguno de los tratamientos modificó las concentraciones de NA en la CPF. Al T0 los animales expuestos a choque o al ELET mostraron concentraciones de 5-HT significativamente mayores que el control. Los tratamientos de restricción y choque estuvieron asociados con altas concentraciones de corticosterona al T0 y a T1 después del tratamiento respectivo. En conjunto, los resultados mostraron que en la CPF los sistemas noradrenérgico y serotonérgico y la concentración de corticosterona responden en forma diferente a los distintos estresores.O córtex pré-frontal (CPF) participa nas funções cognitivas e na regulação do estresse. As concentrações de noradrenalina (NA) e serotonina (5-HT) em algumas regiões do sistema nervoso central são modificadas pelo estresse agudo. O efeito depende do estressor e do tempo que transcorra entre o estressor e a avaliação. O objetivo do presente estudo foi avaliar o efeito agudo de diferentes estressores na atividade da NA e 5-HT no PFC e sua relação com os níveis de corticosterona. Grupos independentes de ratos (250-270 g) foram submetidos a restrição, choque ou treinamento no labirinto elevado em T (ELET). Os animais foram sacrificados imediatamente (T0) ou uma hora (T1) depois da exposição ao estresse. Um grupo não tratado, sacrificado ao mesmo tempo que os animais tratados, incluiu-se como controle. As mostras do PFC foram dissecadas e a concentração de NA, 5-HT e seus metabolitos foi detectada pela técnica de HPLC. As concentrações de corticosterona foram medidas no soro. Nenhum dos tratamentos modificou as concentrações de NA no PFC. Em T0 os animais expostos a choque o ao ELET mostraram concentrações de 5-HT significativamente maiores que o controle. Os tratamentos de restrição e choque estiveram associados com altas concentrações de corticosterona em T0 e em T1 depois do tratamento respectivo. Em conjunto, os resultados mostraram que no PFC os sistemas noradrenérgico e serotonérgico e a concentração de corticosterona respondem de maneira diferente aos diferentes estressores

Nivel de satisfacción laboral de los empleados de la Municipalidad Distrital de Huanchaco – Huanchaco 2017

RESUMEN La presente investigación tiene como propósito fundamental medir el nivel de satisfacción laboral de los empleados de la Municipalidad Distrital de Huanchaco (MDH). En el contexto teórico se presentan algunos antecedentes a nivel internacional, nacional y local, así como también bases teóricas relacionadas a la Satisfacción Laboral. La presente investigación es un estudio descriptivo. Se consideró como nuestra población a 363 trabajadores que laboran en la MDH, se aplicó el muestreo aleatorio simple, el tamaño de la muestra resultante es de 123 empleados a quienes aplicamos un cuestionario previamente validado por tres profesionales expertos en el tema de investigación. El análisis de los resultados permitió identificar el nivel de satisfacción laboral de los empleados. Además, se observó que el personal no tiene un grado de identificación con la institución ni autonomía para realizar su labor. También se pudo observar que la percepción de realizar algo valioso para la sociedad no es compartida por todo el personal y que su participación en la determinación de objetivos institucionales es baja. Asimismo, la percepción de un ambiente de trabajo agradable no es compartida como también el reconocimiento de sus superiores por su desempeño laboral es bajo. Finalmente, en base a los resultados presentados se formularon recomendaciones orientadas a mejorar la Satisfacción Laboral del personal de la institución en estudio. PALABRAS CLAVE: Satisfacción Laboral, Personal.ABSTRACT The main purpose of this research is to measure the level of job satisfaction of the employees of the Municipalidad Distrital de Huanchaco (MDH). In the theoretical context some background at international, national and local level, as well as theoretical basis related at job satisfaction are presented. This research is a descriptive study. It was considered as our population the 363 workers who work in the MDH, simple random sampling was applied, the sample size was 123 employees, who were asked to perform questionnaire previously validated by three experts in the research topic. The analysis of the results identified the level of job satisfaction of employees. In addition, we observe that the staff does not have a degree of identification with the institution or autonomy to carry out its work. As well as, the low knowledge of the organizational structure of the institution under study. It was also possible to observe that the perception of doing something valuable to society is not shared by all staff and that their participation in the determination of institutional objectives is low. Likewise, the perception of a pleasant working environment is not shared by all the staff and the degree of recognition of job performance is low. Finally, based on the results presented, recommendations were formulated aimed at improving the Work Satisfaction of the staff of the institution under study. KEYWORDS: Job Satisfaction, Workers

Diversidad de artrópodos asociados a traspatios con dominancia de árboles de durazno Prunus persica (Rosales: Rosaceae) en el Estado de México

Los traspatios son relevantes para el humano ya que proveen alimento y pueden ser reservorios de biodiversidad. Sin embargo, estos agroecosistemas han sido poco estudiados debido a la enorme variación de tamaño, forma y manejo que presentan. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar la abundancia y riqueza de artrópodos asociados a traspatios con dominancia de durazno Prunus persica (L.) Stokes en el centro de México, a lo largo de dos temporadas climáticas (lluvias y seca). Se muestrearon cinco traspatios dentro de una misma comunidad humana mediante trampas de caída (pitfall), las cuales fueron monitoreadas mensualmente durante 12 meses (mayo 2017–mayo 2018). Se colectaron 3,263 individuos pertenecientes a nueve órdenes identificados para 175 morfoespecies. Los órdenes más abundantes y con mayor riqueza en ambas temporadas fueron consistentemente Diptera, Coleoptera e Hymenoptera. La abundancia de individuos no presentó diferencias significativas entre traspatios ni entre temporadas. En el traspatio con densidades intermedias de árboles de duraznos, se presentó una menor diversidad, pero la riqueza de especies no fue significativamente diferente entre traspatios. La diversidad estimada en el presente estudio es más alta comparada con otros estudios en cultivos extensivos de durazno. Los traspatios son importantes para la conservación, no solo de especies apreciadas por el ser humano, sino que también funcionan como refugios de artrópodos, manteniendo abundancias parecidas incluso en épocas de estiaje como lo encontrado en este estudio. Esto sin contraponer la producción a pequeña escala de árboles frutales como lo son los duraznos criollos.Backyards are relevant for humans because the food they provide, and they can become biodiversity reservoirs. However, these agroecosystems have been poorly studied because the enormous variation in sizes and type of managements they receive from humans. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate arthropods abundance and richness associated to backyards with peach trees dominance Prunus persica (L.) Stokes in Mexico center during two seasons (dry and rainy). We sampled five backyards inside a human community by using pitfall traps which were served every month during twelve months (May 2017–May 2018). We found 3,263 individuals from nine orders and 175 morphospecies were identified. The most abundant and the richest orders were consistent between seasons Diptera, Coleoptera and Hymenoptera. Abundance did not show significant differences between backyards or between seasons. Although richness was not significantly different from the other backyards the backyard with intermediate coverage of peach trees showed the lowest diversity. Our diversity results compared to other studies conducted in extensive peach orchards show highest diversity. Backyards are important for the conservation not only of species appreciated by humans, but also, they function as refuges of arthropod diversity maintaining similar abundances even in times of low water availability as we found in this study. This without affect the small-scale production of fruit trees such as peach

Solution of a Bi-Objective Purchasing Scheduling Problem with Constrained Funds using Pareto Optimization

Abstract. In this paper the Purchasing Scheduling Problem (PSP) with limited funds is presented. PSP is formulated through the optimization of two objectives based on the inventory-supply process: maximization of satisfied demands and minimization of purchasing costs. The problem is solved using two variants of the Ant Colony System algorithm (ACS), designed under Pareto's optimization principle in which elements of multi-objective representation for computing a feasible solution are incorporated to the basic design of ACS. Experimental results reveal that the Pareto approach improves solutions over the ACS in 8%, obtaining an efficiency of 80% solving the set of PSP instances as purchasing plans. This reveals the advantages of developing evolutionary algorithms based on multi-objective approaches, which can be exploited in planning and scheduling systems

The Impact of mRNA Structure on Guide RNA Targeting in Kinetoplastid RNA Editing

Mitochondrial mRNA editing in Trypanosoma brucei requires the specific interaction of a guide RNA with its cognate mRNA. Hundreds of gRNAs are involved in the editing process, each needing to target their specific editing domain within the target message. We hypothesized that the structure surrounding the mRNA target may be a limiting factor and involved in the regulation process. In this study, we selected four mRNAs with distinct target structures and investigated how sequence and structure affected efficient gRNA targeting. Two of the mRNAs, including the ATPase subunit 6 and ND7-550 (5′ end of NADH dehydrogenase subunit 7) that have open, accessible anchor binding sites show very efficient gRNA targeting. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays indicate that the cognate gRNA for ND7-550 had 10-fold higher affinity for its mRNA than the A6 pair. Surface plasmon resonance studies indicate that the difference in affinity was due to a four-fold faster association rate. As expected, mRNAs with considerable structure surrounding the anchor binding sites were less accessible and had very low affinity for their cognate gRNAs. In vitro editing assays indicate that efficient pairing is crucial for gRNA directed cleavage. However, only the A6 substrate showed gRNA-directed cleavage at the correct editing site. This suggests that different gRNA/mRNA pairs may require different “sets” of accessory factors for efficient editing. By characterizing a number of different gRNA/mRNA interactions, we may be able to define a “bank” of RNA editing substrates with different putative chaperone and other co-factor requirements. This will allow the more efficient identification and characterization of transcript specific RNA editing accessory proteins

Predictors, pathological characteristics and outcomes of bladder recurrences following nephroureterectomy

Objetivos: Analizar las variables predictoras de recidiva vesical (RV) tras nefroureterectomía(NU) por tumor de tracto urinario superior (TTUS), así como sus características patológicas,evolución y repercusión en supervivencia. Material y métodos: Estudio retrospectivo de 117 pacientes sometidos a NU laparoscópica por TTUS entre 2007-2012 en nuestro centro. Los posibles factores predictores de RV se analizaron mediante regresión de Cox y para el estudio de supervivencia se utilizaron las curvas de Kaplan-Meier.Resultados: Fueron 85 hombres (73%) y 32 mujeres (27%) con una edad media de 70 años. Tras un seguimiento medio de 26 meses, 23 presentaron RV (19,6%). En el análisis multivariante, el género (p = 0,003; HR mujer 3,8) y la localización del TTUS en uréter distal (p = 0,002; HR 4,8) fueron predictores independientes de RV. La mediana de tiempo hasta la RV fue de 8 meses. Quince pacientes presentaron una RV no músculo-invasiva (65,2%) y 8 músculo-invasiva (34,8%). Todas las RV excepto 2, aparecieron durante los primeros 2 años. Cinco casos con RV no músculo-invasiva presentaron nueva RV. Seispacientes con RV músculo-invasiva murieron sin poderse definir si fue por tumor vesical o de vías. La aparición de RV no mostró repercusión en la supervivencia de los pacientes con TTUS. Conclusiones: El género (mujer) y la localización del TTUS (uréter distal) son factores predic-tores de RV tras NU. Pacientes con estas características podrían beneficiarse de tratamientoadyuvante intravesical y de un seguimiento más estricto. La aparición de RV no tiene impacto en la supervivencia de los pacientes con TTUS. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the predictors for bladder recurrence (BR) after nephroureterectomy (NU) for upper urinary tract tumors (UUTT), as well as its pathological characteristics, outcomes and impact on survival. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective study of 117 patients who underwent laparoscopic nephroureterectomy by UUTT between 2007-2012 at our center. The potential predictors for BR were analyzed using Cox regression; Kaplan-Meier curves were employed to study survival. RESULTS: The sample was composed of 85 men (73%) and 32 women (27%), with a mean age of 70 years. After a mean follow-up of 26 months, 23 patients presented BR (19.6%). In the multivariate analysis, sex (p=.003; HR [female], 3.8) and the location of the UUTT in the distal ureter (p=.002; HR, 4.8) were independent predictors for BR. The median time to BR was 8 months. Fifteen patients presented a nonmuscle-invasive BR (65.2%), and 8 presented a muscle-invasive BR (34.8%). All BRs, except for 2, appeared during the first 2 years. Five cases with nonmuscle-invasive BR presented a new BR. Six patients with muscle-invasive BR died before it could be determined whether cause of death was the BR or an UUTT relapse. The onset of BR showed no repercussion on the survival of patients with UUTT. CONCLUSIONS: Sex (female) and the location of the UUTT (distal ureter) are predictors for BR after NU. Patients with these characteristics might benefit from adjuvant intravesical treatment and closer monitoring. The onset for RV has no impact on the survival of patients with UUTT

Experimental Infection of Captive Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes) with Mycobacterium bovis

[EN] In Europe, animal tuberculosis (TB) due to Mycobacterium bovis involves multi-host communities that include cattle and wildlife species, such as wild boar (Sus scrofa), badgers (Meles meles) and red deer (Cervus elaphus). Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) infections have also been recently reported in some TB endemic regions in the Iberian Peninsula and France, with some of the infected animals shedding M. bovis in urine and feces. In order to understand the pathogenesis of M. bovis infection in foxes and the associated risk of transmission, 12 captive foxes (6 females and 6 males) were inoc-ulated orally with 2 × 107 colony-forming units of a French field isolate of M. bovis. Clinical samples (urine, feces and oropharyngeal swabs) were collected every four weeks and tested for molecular diagnosis and bacteriology. Serological responses were measured by IDEXX M. bovis Ab Test and Multi Antigen Print Immunoassay (MAPIA). At a post-mortem examination performed 12 weeks post infection (wpi), tissues were tested for the presence of M. bovis and associated gross and microscopic TB-like lesions. M. bovis was detected by PCR in bladder swabs of 3 animals at 12 wpi. It was also detected pre-mortem at different time points of the experiment in the oropharyngeal mu-cus of three individuals and in the feces of nine foxes, with two of them confirmed by bacteriology. All 12 foxes had at least 4 PCR positive samples (out of the 23 tested), and all but 1 fox had at least 1 culture positive sample. The culture negative fox was PCR positive in both retropharyngeal and mesenteric lymph nodes, in line with the results of the other animals. Seroconversion was observed in all foxes except one during the experiment, and in nine at the final time point. No gross visible lesions were found in any animal at the post-mortem examination. The histology showed small granulomas within the lymph nodes, tonsils, liver and lungs from eight animals, with the presence of few acid-fast bacilli. These results confirmed that all orally-infected foxes developed mild TB lesions but they were able to shed mycobacteria in about 75% of cases, 1 month post-infection (9 out 12 foxes). These results show that it is possible to induce typical TB infection experimentally in captive foxes, with measurable M. bovis excretion; such an experimental system could be useful for future evaluations of diagnostics and vaccines in this speciesSIThe French Ministry of Agriculture mainly financed the sampling and the analyses in the framework of the RFSA call on TB projects (Anses-DGAl credit agreement RFSA 2017-326). The animals and the running cost of the BSL3 facilities and technical resources were financed by the European Commission in the context of Horizon 2020?Vetbionet Transnational Access Activities (TNA) call. This work is also partially the result of the I+D+i research project RTI2018-096010-B-C21, funded by the Spanish MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ Ministry of Science, Innovation and the European Regional Development Funds (FEDER Una manera de hacer Europa), and of PCTI 2021? 2023 (GRUPIN: IDI2021-000102) funded by Principado de Asturias and FEDE

Synthesis, characterization and biological evaluation of octyltrimethylammonium tetrathiotungstate

Octyltrimethylammonium tetrathiotungstate salt (ATT-C8) was synthesized and its ability to chelate copper was evaluated. The biological and toxic aspects were evaluated by in vitro and in vivo assays, using bovine aorta endothelial cells (BAEC) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos. The obtained results suggest that ATT-C8 has better biocompatibility, showing a significantly lower lethal concentration 50 (LC50) value in comparison to ammonium tetrathiotungstate (ATT). Zebrafish embryos assay results indicate that both tetrathiotungstate salts at the studied concentrations increase the hatching time. Even more, an in vivo assay showed that synthesized materials behave as copper antagonists and have the ability to inhibit its toxicological effects. Also, both materials were found to be active for the in vitro 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The characterization of the materials was carried out using the following spectroscopic techniques: Ultraviolet–Visible (UV–Vis), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NRM).The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the UABC-UNAM SENERCONACYT 117373 project. Authors thank David Navas Fernandez for excellent technical support in these experiments, as well as Dr. Raúl Romero Rivera for his valuable comments. The scientific work developed by MAM’s group is supported by grants PID2019-105010RB-I00 (Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities), and UMA18- FEDERJA-220 (Andalusian Government and FEDER) and funds from group BIO 267 (Andalusian Government), as well as funds from ‘‘Plan Propio de Investigación y Transferencia’’ (U. Málaga)