Stress Granules in the Viral Replication Cycle

As intracellular parasites, viruses require a host cell in order to replicate. However, they face a series of cellular responses against infection. One of these responses is the activation of the double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-activated protein kinase R (PKR). PKR phosphorylates the α subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α), which in turn results in global protein synthesis inhibition and formation of stress granules (SGs). Recent studies have shown that SGs can interfere with the replicative cycle of certain viruses. This review addresses how viruses have evolved different control strategies at the SG level to ensure an efficient replication cycle during the cellular stress response triggered by the viral infection

Evaluación de la diferencia de vitamina A en niños menores de 5 años con infecciones respiratorias y diarreas agudas por el método de citología de impresión conjuntival (CIC)

La deficiencia de vitamina A (DVA) es un problema de salud pública en países pobres y afecta principalmente a niños pequeños. La manifestación clínica más frecuente de la DVA es la ceguera nocturna y cambios en el epitelio ocular, que se denominan Xeroftalmía. Estos cambios pueden evaluarse en forma precoz mediante un método de diagnóstico conocido como Citología de Impresión Conjuntival (CIC). Objetivo: Determinar la DVA en niños menores de 5 años con el método de CIC.Diseño: Estudio descriptivo, transversal con muestreo probabilístico. Institución: Servicio de Pediatría del Hospital Nacional E. Rebagliati M. y Centro de Educación Inicial (CEI) Modelo, de Essalud. Participantes: 103 niños menores de 5 años, en el periodo setiembre-99 a febrero 2000.Intervenciones: La población de estudio se distribuyó en dos grupos; uno constituido por 45 niños sanos del CEI Modelo y el otro constituido por 58 niños enfermos que fueron hospitalizados por infección respiratoria aguda (IRA) o por enfermedad diarreica aguda (EDA).Principales medidas de resultados: Indice nutricional Peso/Talla (P/T), CIC normal y CIC anormal. Resultados:El estado nutricional se midió mediante el indicador P/T resultando adecuado o normal en 68.9% de niños sanos, y en 86.2% de niños enfermos. Se encontró niños con sobrepeso en el grupo de sanos (31.1 %) y en el grupo de enfermos (3.4 %).Los niños menores de 2 años fueron los más afectados por IRA y EDA, en 60.3% de casos; y dentro de las IRA se presentaron con mayor frecuencia la neumonía y bronconeumonía, en 45.7 %. El método CIC se aplicó a todos los niños estudiados y resultó anormal en 4.4 % de los niños sanos y en 63.8 % de los niños hospitalizados por IRA y EDA; encontrándose asociación estadística significativa (p< 0.05) al comparar ambos grupos de niños respecto al resultado de CIC. Conclusiones: El hallazgo de CIC anormal con mayor frecuencia en los niños hospitalizados por IRA y EDA sugiere evidencia de DVA en estos pacientes. Palabras clave:Método CIC, infección respiratoria aguda, enfermedad diarreica aguda, niños menores de 5 años, deficiencia de vitamina A.---The vitaminAdeficiency(VAD) is a problem of public health in poor countries and this affect especially infants and toddlers. The clinic manifestation more frequent of VAD is night blindness and change in the ocular epithelium that these nameXerophthalmia.These processes may assess precociously whit method of conjuntival impression citology (CIC). Objectives: To determine VAD in children under 5 years of age by method of CIC. Design: Descriptive, transversal studywith probability sampling. Institution: Department of Pediatrics at National Hospital E. Rebagliati M. and Model CEI, both from Essalud .Participants: 103 children under 5 years of age in the period between September-99 and February 2000. Interventions: The study population was distributed into two groups; one consisting of 45 healthy children of Model CEI, and the other consisting of 58 children ill, hospitalized in the Department of Pediatrics at Rebagliati Hospital with acute respiratory infection (ARI) and acute diarrhea (AD). Main outcome measures: Nutritional index Weigth/Height (W/H), normal CIC, abnormal CIC. Results: Nutritional status was assessed index W/H resulting in adequate or normal in 68.9 % of healthy children and 86.2 % of sick children. Overweiht children were found in the healthy group (31.1 %) and the group of sick (3.4 %). The children under two years olds were the most affected by ARI and AD, by 60.3 %; and inside of ARI occurred more frequently pneumonia and bronchopneumonia, by 45.7 %. The method CIC was applied to all children studied, and was abnormal en 4.4 % of healthy children and in 63.8% of children hospitalized by ARI and AD, founding a statistically significant association (p< 0.05 ) when comparing both groups of children regarding the outcome of CIC. Conclusions: The finding of abnormal CIC mainly in hospitalized children by ARI and AD suggests that there is evidence of VAD in they. Key words: CIC method, acute respiratory infections, acute diarrhea, children under the of 5, vitamin A deficiency.Tesi

Validation of a Lagrangian model for large-scale macroplastic tracer transport using mussel-peg in NW Spain (Ría de Arousa)

Marine debris is a growing problem in recent years due to population growth around the world. The incorrect management of plastic waste causes these bodies reach the seas and oceans, becoming a worldwide problem. Once they reach the seas and oceans, they begin a long period of degradation, moving from a macro state (plastics whose diameter is greater than 0.5 cm) to a micro state (diameter less than 0.5 cm). The microplastics spread throughout the oceans, entering the food chain of marine species and, subsequently, of humans. Therefore, it is important to stop the problem while it remains at the macroscale. In this work, a validation of a recently developed Lagrangian computational model to track the movement of macro plastics in seas and oceans is presented. This validation is performed on a regional scale, in the Ría de Arousa, one of the most important estuaries for mussel cultivation in northwestern Spain. During mussel cultivation in rafts, a type of floating plastic stick are released, the mussel-pegs. The potential of this study is that we can compare the accumulation results of the model with the accumulation data collected on the Galician beaches. In a general framework, the influence of wind on the spatial distribution of the accumulations given by the model was observed. For the monitoring data, similar results were found for the accumulation trends over the entire total period. For the monthly representation, some discrepancies were observed. These differences can be attributed to particular synoptic situations, poor reproduction of the coastline or to the very orientation of the study area with respect to the intertidal dynamicsWe gratefully acknowledge financial support by CleanAtlantic Interreg Project (EAPA 46/2016) and Xunta de Galicia under Research Grant No. 2021-PG036-1S

Virtualidad de la Maestría en Gerencia de la Salud en tiempos de pandemia del COVID-19 en la Universidad de Ciencias Médicas (UCIMED)

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, health authorities created guidelines that resulted in the Master in health management to become an online course. This article presents the evaluation of this online course according to its active students. An online questionnaire was applied to all of the students, 100% of the students answered it. Amongst the results, 91,3% of students are satisfied or very satisfied with the online course, 100% consider the online platforms of the course to be good, very good or excellent, 91,3 % of students consider the teachers to be very good or excellent and finally, 100% of students considered that the objectives for the course where covered in the online modality. It is recommended that the online course be maintained for future students opting for this master’s degree.Se presenta el resultado de la evaluación del proceso de virtualidad de la enseñanza en la Maestría en Gerencia en Salud (MGS) realizado como consecuencia de las directrices emanadas por las autoridades de salud debido a la pandemia del COVID-19. Se utilizó un cuestionario auto administrado, por vía virtual, al total de estudiantes. El 100% de los estudiantes respondieron la misma, El 91,3% de los estudiantes están satisfechos o muy satisfechos con la modalidad virtual, el 100% califican la estabilidad de las plataformas tecnológicas utilizadas como buenas, muy buenas o excelentes, el 91.3 % de los estudiantes evalúan el desempeño de los profesores como muy bueno o excelente, y se cubrieron los objetivos de los cursos siempre o casi siempre en el 100% de los cursos. Se recomienda mantener esta modalidad de enseñanza para el programa

Programas de especialidades médicas: procesos de selección y admisión en UCIMED, Costa Rica

Opening medical specialties at a private university, such as the University of Medical Sciences (UCIMED), represents an important fact in the training of specialists in Costa Rica. This article presents and reviews the historical evolution of the development of the first three resident selection processes that were incorporated into UCIMED's postgraduate programs in medical specialties. The first specialty approved and offered was family and community medicine, followed six months later by that of gynecology and obstetrics. During these processes 169 doctors chose to participate in the selection processes carried out between 2019 and 2020. There is a predominance of women with a 68% participation. The last admission process was challenging because it was carried out during the pandemic associated with COVID-19 and was the process with the highest participation of applicants.La apertura de especialidades médicas en una universidad privada, la Universidad de Ciencias Médicas (UCIMED), representa un hecho importante en la formación de especialistas en Costa Rica. En este artículo se presenta y revisa la evolución histórica del desarrollo de los primeros tres procesos de selección de residentes que se incorporaron a los programas de posgrado en especialidades médicas de la UCIMED. La primera especialidad aprobada y ofertada fue medicina familiar y comunitaria, seguida seis meses después por la de ginecología y obstetricia.  Durante estos procesos 169 médicos optaron por participar en lo procesos de selección realizados entre 2019 y 2020. Hay un predomino de mujeres con un 68% de participación. El último proceso de admisión revistió un escenario retador pues se llevó a cabo durante la pandemia asociada a COVID-19 y fue el proceso con mayor participación de aspirantes

Safety monitoring of cytostatic handling

Context: The Institute of Oncology and Radiobiology (INOR) is the leading institution for the diagnosis, treatment and follow up of cancer in Cuba. Cancer treatment is mainly by three methods: surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Pharmacological treatments involve the use of dangerous substances such as cytostatics, the handling of which threat the health of the occupationally exposed staff. Aims: To evaluate a biomarker of genotoxicity indicative of DNA damage in the biomonitoring of occupational risks associated with the administration of antineoplastic drugs to hospitalized patients. Methods: The determination of the frequency of micronuclei, in cells of the exfoliated oral mucosa was determined (Micronucleus test) in subjects who administer cytostatic drugs at the institute and a control group formed by administrative personal. Results: Present results evidenced that all exposed subjects possess the same DNA damage that non-exposed-ones. Such results are in concordance with the proper use of primary protection barriers and the adhesion to normalized operational procedures. Conclusions: The frequency of micronuclei is a useful biomarker for assessing DNA damage associated with the administration of antineoplastic drugs. The risk perception analysis (RISKPERCEP) in occupationally exposed subjects complements the occupational safety monitoring

Trabajo Colaborativo y Aprendizaje del Idioma Inglés en Estudiantes de un Centro de Idiomas

The objective of this research was to determine the relationship that exists between collaborative work and the learning of the English language in students of a language center. The method used was hypothetical-deductive, the type of applied research was quantitative; descriptive level and correlational design. The population consisted of 148 students and the sample was 107. The technique used to collect information was the survey and the instrument was the questionnaire. It was concluded that the collaborative work variable is directly and positively related to the English language learning variable.La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo determinar la relación que existe entre el trabajo colaborativo y el aprendizaje del idioma inglés en estudiantes de un centro de idiomas. El método empleado fue el hipotético-deductivo, la investigación fue de enfoque cuantitativo; de nivel descriptivo y de diseño correlacional. La población estuvo formada por 148 estudiantes y la muestra fue de 107. La técnica empleada para recolectar información fue la encuesta y el instrumento fue el cuestionario. Se concluyó que la variable trabajo colaborativo está relacionada de manera directa y positiva con la variable aprendizaje del idioma inglés

Antología. Taller de Escritura Autobiográfica

El libro que está en sus manos representa una cosecha de vivencias y deseos, que hoy encuentran un lugar para ofrecerse como alimento a las personas que amamos la escritura y la historia. Sus páginas nos confían los recuerdos e inquietudes de un grupo de escritoras cuyo amor a la lectura y la escritura, que les ha acompañado a través de su vida, toma forma en esta serie de relatos autobiográficos. Encontrará en este recorrido imágenes que nos transportan hasta 80 años hacia el pasado, entre juegos infantiles, luchas contra las condiciones adversas y reflexiones sobre las diferentes etapas de la vida. Estas historias nos regalan la oportunidad de conocer sobre el ayer, pero sobre todo, nos transmiten la sabiduría de un grupo de personas que hacen de su existencia una poesía. El proyecto “Escritura y movimiento dancístico como escenario potencial para la construcción autobiográfica en personas adultas mayor”, del Centro de Investigación sobre Diversidad Cultural y Estudios Regionales (CIDICER) de la Universidad de Costa Rica, agradece al escritor y las escrituras de este libro por su contribución a la investigación sobre la relación entre el arte y el psicoanálisis; así como el aporte a la cultura que significan sus escritos.Universidad de Costa Rica/[836-B9-148]/UCR/Costa RicaUCR::Sedes Regionales::Sede de Occidente::Recinto San Ramón::Centro de Investigaciones sobre Diversidad Cultural y Estudios Regionales (CIDICER

Naica's "Cueva de los Cristales": Synchrotron radiation characterization of the wall-crystal interface

Naica's "Cueva de los Cristales" was discovered in 2000. It has been considered particularly interesting for its beauty and the challenges it poses to crystallography. This article focuses on the study of the wall-selenite interface by various techniques, particularly X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), with emphasis on micro-X-ray fluorescence (micro-XRF) and micro-X-ray absorption near edge structure (micro-XANES). The main phases calcite, quartz, goethite and montmorillonite were identified by XRD, as well as the association of crystalline and amorphous minor and trace phases of Zn, Mn, Cu, As and Pb. The latter were identified in micro-XRF maps and micro-XANES spectra. The results for the morphology and the chemical description of the crystal-wall interface may contribute to propose a nucleation and growth mechanism for Naica megacrystals

Geographic patterns of tree dispersal modes in Amazonia and their ecological correlates

Aim: To investigate the geographic patterns and ecological correlates in the geographic distribution of the most common tree dispersal modes in Amazonia (endozoochory, synzoochory, anemochory and hydrochory). We examined if the proportional abundance of these dispersal modes could be explained by the availability of dispersal agents (disperser-availability hypothesis) and/or the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits (resource-availability hypothesis). Time period: Tree-inventory plots established between 1934 and 2019. Major taxa studied: Trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 9.55 cm. Location: Amazonia, here defined as the lowland rain forests of the Amazon River basin and the Guiana Shield. Methods: We assigned dispersal modes to a total of 5433 species and morphospecies within 1877 tree-inventory plots across terra-firme, seasonally flooded, and permanently flooded forests. We investigated geographic patterns in the proportional abundance of dispersal modes. We performed an abundance-weighted mean pairwise distance (MPD) test and fit generalized linear models (GLMs) to explain the geographic distribution of dispersal modes. Results: Anemochory was significantly, positively associated with mean annual wind speed, and hydrochory was significantly higher in flooded forests. Dispersal modes did not consistently show significant associations with the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits. A lower dissimilarity in dispersal modes, resulting from a higher dominance of endozoochory, occurred in terra-firme forests (excluding podzols) compared to flooded forests. Main conclusions: The disperser-availability hypothesis was well supported for abiotic dispersal modes (anemochory and hydrochory). The availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits seems an unlikely explanation for the distribution of dispersal modes in Amazonia. The association between frugivores and the proportional abundance of zoochory requires further research, as tree recruitment not only depends on dispersal vectors but also on conditions that favour or limit seedling recruitment across forest types