Perspectiva del docente de educación superior acerca del proceso de innovación pedagógica a través de la incorporación de tecnología. ESLE, 2013-2014. Una propuesta de investigación – acción.

En las últimas décadas del siglo XX se han producido grandes cambios tecnológicos a nivel global debido a la introducción de las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación (TIC). La educación también se ha visto afectada por este fenómeno. La mayor parte de la literatura pedagógica contemporánea coincide en señalar que las TIC se han convertido en herramientas que potencian y facilitan los procesos de enseñanza y aprendizaje para proveer a las nuevas generaciones habilidades y conocimientos significativos. En este escenario la Escuela de Lenguas Extranjeras de la Universidad del Aconcagua, resolvió incorporar las TIC al aula para el Profesorado en Lengua y Cultura Inglesa.Esta transformación resulta compleja para los docentes de la Institución ya que implica repensar su rol y hacer propio el paradigma de “aprender a aprender” para mejorar las prácticas educativas con la incorporación efectiva de las TIC. Por esta razón se consideró necesario conocer la percepción de estos educadores frente a la adopción de las TIC. El objetivo de la investigación es describir y analizar las posturas de los docentes de educación superior acerca del proceso de innovación pedagógica, a través de la incorporación de tecnología, que está protagonizando la ESLE para poder diseñar acciones que contribuyan al fortalecimiento de la implementación de la nueva modalidad. Esta investigación propone una metodología de investigación – acción que permite obtener esta información y posteriormente, a partir del análisis de los resultados, diseñar acciones a seguir para acompañar y fortalecer la implementación de la nueva modalidad.Esta investigación se encuentra finalizando el segundo ciclo (1er año) de ejecución: se ha realizado el planteamiento del problema, se ha construido el marco teórico, se ha elaborado y aplicado un instrumento de recolección de datos y actualmente se está procesando esta información

Focused lung ultrasonography of calves (FLUC): valutazione di un protocollo rapido per la diagnosi ultrasonografica della broncopolmonite enzootica

Nella pratica buiatrica vengono comunemente usati gli score clinici che rappresentano un mezzo diagnostico pratico ed immediato per la diagnosi di broncopolmonite enzootica (BRD), nonostante la sensibilit\ue0 e la specificit\ue0 di questi score sia bassa (Calf respiratory score \u2013 CRS: sensibilit\ue0 55%, specificit\ue0 58%; auscultazione toracica: sensibilit\ue0 3-17%). L\u2019ecografia del torace, invece, \ue8 un esame molto accurato che permette di avere un quadro dei danni anatomici al polmone, difficilmente riscontrabili con altri mezzo diagnostici. Bench\ue9 il \u201clung ultrasonographic score system\u201d (LUS), rappresenti il \u201cgold standard\u201d per la valutazione delle alterazioni patologiche del polmone, questa tecnica si dimostra spesso indaginosa soprattutto per i veterinari che hanno poca dimestichezza con l\u2019ecografia toracica. Lo scopo di questo studio \ue8 stabilire la validit\ue0 di un protocollo ecografico rapido utilizzabile anche da veterinari senza esperienza in ecografia del torace, limitando la scansione a specifiche regioni dell\u2019area polmonare (lobi craniali) che vengono comunemente colpite in corso di BRD. Vitelli di razza frisona italiana con un\u2019et\ue0 compresa tra 30 giorni e 6 mesi, un punteggio di Calf respiratory score (CRS) maggiore a 5 e l\u2019assenza di patologie concomitanti sono stati selezionati come casi. Come controlli sono stati selezionati vitelli con le medesime caratteristiche ma con un punteggio del CRS inferiore a 5. Ogni vitello \ue8 stato sottoposto a visita clinica, a compilazione del CRS e a LUS. Immediatamente dopo la scansione ecografica, un operatore con scarsa esperienza ha effettuato la sola ecografia del V spazio intercostale di entrambi gli emitoraci (focused lung ultrasonography of calves; FLUC) utilizzando come marker ventrale la giunzione costo-condrale e la deviazione pleurica. Sono state calcolate sensibilit\ue0, specificit\ue0 e valori predittivi negativo e positivo per la presenza del consolidamento polmonare riscontrato tramite FLUC. Nello studio sono stati inclusi 26 vitelli (19 \u201cmalati\u201d e 7 \u201csani\u201d). Tramite esecuzione della FLUC nel gruppo \u201cmalati\u201d \ue8 stato possibile rinvenire consolidamento polmonare a livello del quinto spazio intercostale destro e/o sinistro in 17 animali su 19. I due animali che non presentavano consolidamento avevano numerosi artefatti a coda di cometa a livello del V spazio intercostale. Nel gruppo \u201csani\u201d la FLUC non ha riscontrato la presenza di consolidamento polmonare in nessun animale. Valutando gli animali tramite LUS, tutti gli animali inclusi nel gruppo \u201cmalati\u201d hanno mostrato uno score 65 2, mentre gli animali nel gruppo \u201csani\u201d hanno ottenuto uno score < 2. L\u2019accuratezza della FLUC, confrontata all\u2019ecografia totale dell\u2019area polmonare, \ue8 risultata essere pari all\u201985%. La sensibilit\ue0 \ue8 risultata essere 81% e la specificit\ue0 100%. Il valore predittivo positivo del test \ue8 stato pari al 100%, mentre il valore predittivo negativo 56%. La metodica FLUC si \ue8 rivelata essere una metodica pratica, rapida e facilmente eseguibile da un solo operatore, in grado di dare una buona rappresentazione della situazione polmonare. Pu\uf2 essere quindi considerato un ulteriore strumento per i veterinari di campo per raggiungere una precoce, accurata e corretta diagnosi della broncopolmonite enzootica con riferimenti riguardanti il tipo di lesioni, fondamentale per applicare un protocollo terapeutico efficace e risolutivo

76-Year Decline and Recovery of Aspen Mediated by Contrasting Fire Regimes: Long-Unburned, Infrequent and Frequent Mixed-Severity Wildfire

Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) is a valued, minor component on northeastern California landscapes. It provides a wide range of ecosystem services and has been in decline throughout the region for the last century. This decline may be explained partially by the lack of fire on the landscape due to heavier fire suppression, as aspen benefit from fire that eliminates conifer competition and stimulates reproduction through root suckering. However, there is little known about how aspen stand area changes in response to overlapping fire. Our study area in northeastern California on the Lassen, Modoc and Plumas National Forests has experienced recent large mixed-severity wildfires where aspen was present, providing an opportunity to study the re-introduction of fire. We observed two time periods; a 52-year absence of fire from 1941 to 1993 preceding a 24-year period of wildfire activity from 1993 to 2017. We utilized aerial photos and satellite imagery to delineate aspen stands and assess conifer cover percent. We chose aspen stands in areas where wildfires overlapped (twice-burned), where only a single wildfire burned, and areas that did not burn within the recent 24-year period. We observed these same stands within the first period of fire exclusion for comparison (i.e., 1941–1993). In the absence of fire, all aspen stand areas declined and all stands experienced increases in conifer composition. After wildfire, stands that burned experienced a release from conifer competition and increased in stand area. Stands that burned twice or at high severity experienced a larger removal of conifer competition than stands that burned once at low severity, promoting expansion of aspen stand area. Stands with less edge:area ratio also expanded in area more with fire present. Across both time periods, stand movement, where aspen stand footprints were mostly in new areas compared to footprints of previous years, was highest in smaller stands. In the fire exclusion period, smaller stands exhibited greater loss of area and changes in location (movement) than in the return of fire period, highlighting their vulnerability to loss via succession to conifers in the absence of disturbances that provide adequate growing space for aspen over time

Multicystic encephalomalacia as an end-stage finding in abusive head trauma

Abusive head trauma (AHT) is one of the most severe forms of physical child abuse. If a child initially survives severe AHT the neurological outcome can be poor. In recent years several children were seen who developed multicystic encephalomalacia (MCE) after documented severe AHT. A search of the Netherlands Forensic Institute database in The Hague was performed. Inclusion criteria were cases of AHT between 1999 and 2010 where the child was under the age of 1 year old at the time of trauma. Trauma mechanism and radiological information were collected. Five children, three boys and two girls (mean age 57 days, range 8–142 days) who developed cystic encephalomalacia after inflicted traumatic brain injury were included. Survival ranged from 27 to 993 days. In all cases judicial autopsy was performed. All cases came before court and in each case child abuse was considered to be proven. In two cases the perpetrator confessed, during police interrogation, to shaking of the child only. Although a known serious outcome, this is one of the few reports on MCE as a result of AHT. In all cases the diagnosis was confirmed at autopsy

Gene therapy for monogenic liver diseases: clinical successes, current challenges and future prospects

Over the last decade, pioneering liver-directed gene therapy trials for haemophilia B have achieved sustained clinical improvement after a single systemic injection of adeno-associated virus (AAV) derived vectors encoding the human factor IX cDNA. These trials demonstrate the potential of AAV technology to provide long-lasting clinical benefit in the treatment of monogenic liver disorders. Indeed, with more than ten ongoing or planned clinical trials for haemophilia A and B and dozens of trials planned for other inherited genetic/metabolic liver diseases, clinical translation is expanding rapidly. Gene therapy is likely to become an option for routine care of a subset of severe inherited genetic/metabolic liver diseases in the relatively near term. In this review, we aim to summarise the milestones in the development of gene therapy, present the different vector tools and their clinical applications for liver-directed gene therapy. AAV-derived vectors are emerging as the leading candidates for clinical translation of gene delivery to the liver. Therefore, we focus on clinical applications of AAV vectors in providing the most recent update on clinical outcomes of completed and ongoing gene therapy trials and comment on the current challenges that the field is facing for large-scale clinical translation. There is clearly an urgent need for more efficient therapies in many severe monogenic liver disorders, which will require careful risk-benefit analysis for each indication, especially in paediatrics

Frequency and severity of neonatal calf diarrhea cases treated with a standard veterinary hospital protocol do not affect heifer reproduction performance and first lactation production

Neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) is the most critical disease in preweaning calves and causes great economic losses. We evaluated the long-term effects of NCD on reproduction and production outcomes during the first lactation. We also analyzed the effect of the severity of the largest clinicopathologic abnormalities observed during NCD on subsequent first production and reproduction performance. Clinical and laboratory findings were reviewed in 88 Holstein Friesian diarrheic calves over a 4-year period. Calves were treated according to a fluid therapy protocol, and then discharged from the hospital in a healthy state. For each animal, days in milk (DIM), 305-day milk yield, milk fat and protein production, and age at first calving (AFC) were recorded. For the control group, we examined non-hospitalized heifers (n = 85) of the same age and from the same herd without a clinical history of NCD. Generalized linear model analysis showed that there were no significant differences between the two groups in relation to DIM (P = 0.740), 305-d milk yield (P = 0.883), fat (P = 0.660) and protein (P = 0.582) production, and AFC (P = 0.879). No effect of the severity of NCD on the first performance was found. These findings suggest that treated NCD had no effect on AFC and first lactation production. This would ensure suitable reproduction and production standards during the first lactation even in calves that have had severe NCD