Polysaccharide-based self-assembling nanohydrogels: An overview on 25-years research on pullulan

The aim of this overview is to review the evolution of the studies carried out, during more than 25 years, on nanohydrogels obtained by self-assembling of pullulan (PUL) using several hydrophobization strategies. After the first publications, mainly devoted to the preparation and characterization of PUL nanogels, a remarkable number of studies demonstrated how wide can be the field of applications within the main topic of biopharmaceutics. Numerous hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs were entrapped in the nanogel networks, consequently PUL nanogels have been proposed as delivery systems for single drugs and for combination therapies which allowed improvements of pharmacological activities and patient compliance. Furthermore, the large amount of water content allowed loading also proteins which could maintain their native structure and properties. Stimuli-sensitive and stealth PUL nanogel formulations allowed improving the performances of antitumor drugs. These nanohydrogels have also been studied for imaging techniques and for vaccines to be administered by injection and by mucosal application. The studies on PUL nanogels are still in progress and the perspectives for future researches are also addressed

Visual salience of the stop signal affects the neuronal dynamics of controlled inhibition

The voluntary control of movement is often tested by using the countermanding, or stop-signal task that sporadically requires the suppression of a movement in response to an incoming stop-signal. Neurophysiological recordings in monkeys engaged in the countermanding task have shown that dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) is implicated in movement control. An open question is whether and how the perceptual demands inherent the stop-signal affects inhibitory performance and their underlying neuronal correlates. To this aim we recorded multi-unit activity (MUA) from the PMd of two male monkeys performing a countermanding task in which the salience of the stop-signals was modulated. Consistently to what has been observed in humans, we found that less salient stimuli worsened the inhibitory performance. At the neuronal level, these behavioral results were subtended by the following modulations: when the stop-signal was not noticeable compared to the salient condition the preparatory neuronal activity in PMd started to be affected later and with a less sharp dynamic. This neuronal pattern is probably the consequence of a less efficient inhibitory command useful to interrupt the neural dynamic that supports movement generation in PMd

Enseñanza de ondas a través del sonido

Informe final (Profesorado en Física)--Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática Astronomía, Física y Computación, 2016.Informe de la asignatura Metodología y práctica de la enseñanza.En el siguiente trabajo se presenta la experiencia de prácticas docentes realizadas como parte del Profesorado en Física de la Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía, Física y Computación. Las prácticas fueron realizadas en un tercer año de un colegio público de la provincia de Córdoba. El tema que se nos asignó fue “ondas” y se utilizó el sonido como eje central para desarrollarlo. A continuación se muestran las etapas de observación, planificación y desarrollo de nuestra práctica, terminando con un breve análisis y las conclusiones del trabajo.The following work presents the teaching practice experience conducted as a part of the Physics teacher career in the Faculty of Mathematics, Astronomy and Physics. The practices were conducted in a third year of a public school in the province of Córdoba. The issue that was assigned to us was “waves” and the sound was used as the core to develop it. Shown below are the stages of observation, planification and development of our practice, ending with a brief analysis and conclusions of the work

Un enfoque dirigido por modelos para la creación de sistemas robóticos con misión predeterminada

El objetivo de esta tesina es aplicar los conceptos del Desarrollo de Software Dirigido por Modelos (del inglés, Model Driven Development, MDD) a la creación de sistemas robóticos. Puntualmente, se define un lenguaje específico de dominio o DSL (del inglés, Domain Specific Language) para el siguiente problema: Un robot recorre un espacio conocido con anterioridad. Ese recorrido consiste en llegar a un conjunto ordenado de ubicaciones de ese espacio. Cuando el robot llega a una ubicación, puede ejecutar (o no) una serie de acciones. Una vez finalizada la ejecución de la/s accione/s en una ubicación, el robot continúa con el recorrido, trasladándose hacia la siguiente ubicación del conjunto. Luego, se presentan las transformaciones para generar el código fuente a partir del DSL. Esta generación, que transforma un modelo abstracto a código fuente específico de la plataforma, es automática (es decir, sin intervención humana). Como plataforma específica se utiliza el framework ROS (Robot Operating System). Por último, se construye una herramienta gráfica que permite especificar una instancia del DSL y generar el código a partir de ésta.Asesora profesional: Gabriela Pérez.Facultad de Informátic

Uso de la plataforma edX como servicio para cursos MOOC : Una experiencia en la Facultad de Informática

En este artículo se pretende realizar un análisis comparativo entre las plataformas de cursos online tradicionales y las plataformas MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses). En particular, se analizan ventajas y desventajas de las mismas, teniendo como finalidad conocer la conveniencia o no de tomar la decisión de migrar un curso realizado en la Facultad de Informática de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP) titulado como "Curso de Accesibilidad Web" a una plataforma MOOC, concluye ́endose por la afirmativa. Luego, se comparan dos plataformas MOOC, conocidas como OpenMOOC y Open edX, y se concluye, también en base a sus características, ventajas y desventajas, que Open edX es la más apropiada para este curso. Finalmente, se exponen los resultados obtenidos al implementar el curso en la plataforma de mayor conveniencia, mencionando algunos problemas que se han tenido que atravesarFil: Montanari, Franco. Universidad Nacional de La PlataFil: Carrilao, Guillermo Federico. Universidad Nacional de La Plat

Numerical modelling of residual stress redistribution induced by TIG-dressing: TIG-dressing numerical modelling

TIG-dressing is a technique used to improve the fatigue strength of welded joints by a remelting of the weld toe region that promotes both a smoother transition between the plate and the weld crown and a residual stress redistribution. These effects are very hard to be quantified by numerical simulation since a highly coupled thermo-fluid-mechanical analysis is required. However, if the final weld toe geometry is supposed to be known or a-posteriori measured, a simplified numerical method can be used to simulate the residual tress redistribution that uses the activation-deactivation function of elements. This technique is applied to a real steel weldment and results, in terms of phases proportions and residual stress redistribution, were found in good agreement both with data coming from metallurgical analysis and the improved fatigue strength observed on welded joints after the TIG-dressing operation

On the freezing of variables in random constraint satisfaction problems

The set of solutions of random constraint satisfaction problems (zero energy groundstates of mean-field diluted spin glasses) undergoes several structural phase transitions as the amount of constraints is increased. This set first breaks down into a large number of well separated clusters. At the freezing transition, which is in general distinct from the clustering one, some variables (spins) take the same value in all solutions of a given cluster. In this paper we study the critical behavior around the freezing transition, which appears in the unfrozen phase as the divergence of the sizes of the rearrangements induced in response to the modification of a variable. The formalism is developed on generic constraint satisfaction problems and applied in particular to the random satisfiability of boolean formulas and to the coloring of random graphs. The computation is first performed in random tree ensembles, for which we underline a connection with percolation models and with the reconstruction problem of information theory. The validity of these results for the original random ensembles is then discussed in the framework of the cavity method.Comment: 32 pages, 7 figure

Delivering cultural-sensitive health services

Cultural competence consists in attitudes, skills, behaviors and strategies allowing organizations and individuals to behave in situations of cultural diversity.Health systems are requested to assist an increasingly varied population, composed also of migrants (in Italy, they represent approximately 10% of the overall population).Since 2011, CCM has been organizing a Course in Global Health for health professionals. The course includes a module specifically meant to enhance participants’ cultural skills, providing them with knowledge and competences helpful to deal with migrant patients.All health workers committed to offer high quality assistance to each patient should attain “cultural competence”