Orthogonal Polynomials on the Unit Ball and Fourth-Order Partial Differential Equations

The purpose of this work is to analyse a family of mutually orthogonal polynomials on the unit ball with respect to an inner product which includes an additional term on the sphere. First, we will get connection formulas relating classical multivariate orthogonal polynomials on the ball with our family of orthogonal polynomials. Then, using the representation of these polynomials in terms of spherical harmonics, algebraic and differential properties will be deduced

Executive Dysfunctions: The Role in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity and Post-traumatic Stress Neuropsychiatric Disorders

Executive functions (EFs) is an umbrella term for various cognitive processes controlled by a complex neural activity, which allow the production of different types of behaviors seeking to achieve specific objectives, one of them being inhibitory control. There is a wide consensus that clinical and behavioral alterations associated with EF, such as inhibitory control, are present in various neuropsychiatric disorders. This paper reviews the research literature on the relationship between executive dysfunction, frontal-subcortical neural circuit changes, and the psychopathological processes associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). A revision on the role of frontal-subcortical neural circuits and their presumable abnormal functioning and the high frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms could explain the difficulties with putting effector mechanisms into action, giving individuals the necessary tools to act efficiently in their environment. Although neuronal substrate data about ADHD and PTSD has been reported in the literature, it is isolated. Therefore, this review highlights the overlapping of neural substrates in the symptomatology of ADHD and PTSD disorders concerning EFs, especially in the inhibitory component. Thus, the changes related to impaired EF that accompany disorders like ADHD and PTSD could be explained by disturbances that have a direct or indirect impact on the functioning of these loops. Initially, the theoretical model of EF according to current neuropsychology will be presented, focusing on the inhibitory component. In a second stage, this component will be analyzed for each of the disorders of interest, considering the clinical aspects, the etiology and the neurobiological basis. Additionally, commonalities between the two neuropsychiatric conditions will be taken into consideration from the perspectives of cognitive and emotional inhibition. Finally, the implications and future prospects for research and interventions in the area will be outlined, with the intention of contributing scientific reference information that encompasses the knowledge and understanding of executive dysfunction and its relationship with these treated disorders

Conocimiento y prácticas del padre adolescente sobre los cuidados del embarazo

Los padres adolescentes modifican su vida debido a su nuevo rol y la necesidad de formar nuevos vínculos con la pareja, su hijo y la sociedad (Molina, 2011), esta realidad condiciona la necesidad de adquirir conocimientos sobre la paternidad y cómo cuidar a su hijo, así como la adopción de prácticas para desempeñarse en el nuevo contexto y entorno, conduciendo a determinar la relación entre los conocimientos y las prácticas por los adolescentes frente a cuidado durante el embarazo de su pareja adolescente atendidos en el Hospital Regional de Ayacucho. El tipo de investigación fue básica descriptiva, diseño correlacional – descriptivo, método de estudio cuantitativo. La muestra estuvo conformada por 80 padres adolescentes. Para la obtención de datos se empleó la encuesta estructurada evaluativa, llegando a los siguientes resultados: El 53.8% (43) de padres adolescentes atendidos en el Hospital Regional de Ayacucho tuvieron adecuado conocimiento sobre cuidados del embarazo y el 46.3% (37) deficiente conocimiento. El 32.5% (26) de padres adolescentes atendidos en el Hospital Regional de Ayacucho tuvieron adecuada prácticas sobre cuidados del embarazo y el 67.5% (54) deficiente prácticas, contrastando con diversos investigadores, en especial Ávila, Salazar y Bernal (2018), quienes afirman que los padres adolescentes tienen negligencia emocional; otro aspecto que podría explicar la deficiente práctica en los cuidados del embarazo es que los adolescentes puntualizan que su parentalidad conlleva el compromiso de velar perennemente por el hijo, contradiciendo la llamada paternidad activa que se refiere al involucramiento activo en el cuidado y desarrollo del hijo (UNICEF, 2014), esta situación –para él- es una quiebra del proyecto de vida, aunque esto no los exime de nuevamente ser padres. Según algunos estudiosos, al ser padres se sienten irreductibles, sentimiento que se convierte en un factor de riesgo para un segundo embarazo en la adolescencia (Póo y cols. 2019). Se concluye que el conocimiento y prácticas sobre cuidados del embarazo del padre adolescente atendidos en el Hospital Regional de Ayacucho tienen relación estadística significativa (P0.05)

Gene expression profiling of mouse p53-deficient epidermal carcinoma defines molecular determinants of human cancer malignancy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The epidermal specific ablation of <it>Trp53 </it>gene leads to the spontaneous development of aggressive tumors in mice through a process that is accelerated by the simultaneous ablation of <it>Rb </it>gene. Since alterations of p53-dependent pathway are common hallmarks of aggressive, poor prognostic human cancers, these mouse models can recapitulate the molecular features of some of these human malignancies.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To evaluate this possibility, gene expression microarray analysis was performed in mouse samples. The mouse tumors display increased expression of cell cycle and chromosomal instability associated genes. Remarkably, they are also enriched in human embryonic stem cell gene signatures, a characteristic feature of human aggressive tumors. Using cross-species comparison and meta-analytical approaches, we also observed that spontaneous mouse tumors display robust similarities with gene expression profiles of human tumors bearing mutated TP53, or displaying poor prognostic outcome, from multiple body tissues. We have obtained a 20-gene signature whose genes are overexpressed in mouse tumors and can identify human tumors with poor outcome from breast cancer, astrocytoma and multiple myeloma. This signature was consistently overexpressed in additional mouse tumors using microarray analysis. Two of the genes of this signature, AURKA and UBE2C, were validated in human breast and cervical cancer as potential biomarkers of malignancy.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our analyses demonstrate that these mouse models are promising preclinical tools aimed to search for malignancy biomarkers and to test targeted therapies of prospective use in human aggressive tumors and/or with p53 mutation or inactivation.</p

Preclinical studies of toxicity and safety of the AS-48 bacteriocin

The in vitro antimicrobial potency of the bacteriocin AS-48 is well documented, but its clinical application requires investigation, as its toxicity could be different in in vitro (haemolytic and antibacterial activity in blood and cytotoxicity towards normal human cell lines) and in vivo (e.g. mice and zebrafish embryos) models. Overall, the results obtained are promising. They reveal the negligible propensity of AS-48 to cause cell death or impede cell growth at therapeutic concentrations and support the suitability of this peptide as a potential therapeutic agent against several microbial infections, due to its selectivity and potency at low concentrations. In addition, AS-48 exhibits low haemolytic activity in whole blood and does not induce nitrite accumulation in non-stimulated RAW macrophages, indicating a lack of pro-inflammatory effects. The unexpected heightened sensitivity of zebrafish embryos to AS-48 could be due to the low differentiation state of these cells. The low cytotoxicity of AS-48, the absence of lymphocyte proliferation in vivo after skin sensitization in mice, and the lack of toxicity in a murine model support the consideration of the broad spectrum antimicrobial peptideThis research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (SAF2013-48971-C2-1-R, CSD2010-00065, and AGL2015-67995-C3-3-R, all including funds from the European Regional Development Funding, ERDF) and by the Research Groups (BIO160, CTS 944 and CTS 164, UGR) from Junta de Andalucía (Spain). The CIBER-EHD is funded by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. RM-E is grateful for an FPU Grant (FPU14/01537) from the Ministry of Education, (Spain)

Cyano-and ketone-containing selenoesters as multi-target compounds against resistant cancers

Fifteen selenocompounds, comprising of eight ketone-containing selenoesters (K1–K8, also known as oxoselenoesters) and seven cyano-containing selenoesters (N1–N7, known also as cyanoselenoesters), have been designed, synthesized, and evaluated as novel anticancer agents. These compounds are derivatives of previously reported active selenoesters and were prepared following a three-step one-pot synthetic route. The following evaluations were performed in their biological assessment: cytotoxicity determination, selectivity towards cancer cells in respect to non-cancer cells, checkerboard combination assay, ABCB1 inhibition and inhibition of ABCB1 ATPase activity, apoptosis induction, and wound healing assay. As key results, all the compounds showed cytotoxicity against cancer cells at low micromolar concentrations, with cyanoselenoesters being strongly selective. All of the oxoselenoesters, except K4, were potent ABCB1 inhibitors, and two of them, namely K5 and K6, enhanced the activity of doxorubicin in a synergistic manner. The majority of these ketone derivatives modulated the ATPase activity, showed wound healing activity, and induced apoptosis, with K3 being the most potent, with a potency close to that of the reference compound. To summarize, these novel derivatives have promising multi-target activity, and are worthy to be studied more in-depth in future works to gain a greater understanding of their potential applications against cancer.The study was supported by the projects SZTE ÁOK-KKA 2018/270-62-2 of the University of Szeged, Faculty of Medicine and GINOP-2.3.2-15-2016-00038 (Hungary); and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC, Spain, project LINKA20285). This research was funded by VISEGRAD FUND, grant number 22010090; and by the mobility project from the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports INTER-COST, grant number LTC19007. This article is based upon work from COST Action 17104 , supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), (http://www.cost.eu, accessed on 17 September 2021). The study was supported also by two cultural associations: “Trevinca” and “Iniciativas Ropelanas”