La situación de los pensionados en Guadalajara

El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar si la población pensionada de Guadalajara vive en condiciones satisfactorias o no respecto a la pensión que recibe. Se destaca el significado de las pensiones para el gobierno mexicano que se refleja principalmente en la normatividad del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS). La investigación se realizó de forma empírica, es cualitativa aunque con datos cuantitativos. Se tomaron en cuenta aspectos históricos, específicamente en lo relativo a la creación del IMSS en 1942 y a su reforma en el rubro pensionario en 1997, y se aterriza en el contexto de Guadalajara. El sujeto de investigación fue la población de Guadalajara que recibe una pensión a través del IMSS derivada de enfermedad, jubilación o muerte del asegurado o pensionado

Enabling Future Sustainability Transitions: An Urban Metabolism Approach to Los Angeles Pincetl et al. Enabling Future Sustainability Transitions

Summary: This synthesis article presents an overview of an urban metabolism (UM) approach using mixed methods and multiple sources of data for Los Angeles, California. We examine electric energy use in buildings and greenhouse gas emissions from electricity, and calculate embedded infrastructure life cycle effects, water use and solid waste streams in an attempt to better understand the urban flows and sinks in the Los Angeles region (city and county). This quantification is being conducted to help policy-makers better target energy conservation and efficiency programs, pinpoint best locations for distributed solar generation, and support the development of policies for greater environmental sustainability. It provides a framework to which many more UM flows can be added to create greater understanding of the study area's resource dependencies. Going forward, together with policy analysis, UM can help untangle the complex intertwined resource dependencies that cities must address as they attempt to increase their environmental sustainability

Repositioning of Verrucosidin, a purported inhibitor of chaperone protein GRP78, as an inhibitor of mitochondrial electron transport chain complex I.

Verrucosidin (VCD) belongs to a group of fungal metabolites that were identified in screening programs to detect molecules that preferentially kill cancer cells under glucose-deprived conditions. Its mode of action was proposed to involve inhibition of increased GRP78 (glucose regulated protein 78) expression during hypoglycemia. Because GRP78 plays an important role in tumorigenesis, inhibitors such as VCD might harbor cancer therapeutic potential. We therefore sought to characterize VCD's anticancer activity in vitro. Triple-negative breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 were treated with VCD under different conditions known to trigger increased expression of GRP78, and a variety of cellular processes were analyzed. We show that VCD was highly cytotoxic only under hypoglycemic conditions, but not in the presence of normal glucose levels, and VCD blocked GRP78 expression only when glycolysis was impaired (due to hypoglycemia or the presence of the glycolysis inhibitor 2-deoxyglucose), but not when GRP78 was induced by other means (hypoxia, thapsigargin, tunicamycin). However, VCD's strictly hypoglycemia-specific toxicity was not due to the inhibition of GRP78. Rather, VCD blocked mitochondrial energy production via inhibition of complex I of the electron transport chain. As a result, cellular ATP levels were quickly depleted under hypoglycemic conditions, and common cellular functions, including general protein synthesis, deteriorated and resulted in cell death. Altogether, our study identifies mitochondria as the primary target of VCD. The possibility that other purported GRP78 inhibitors (arctigenin, biguanides, deoxyverrucosidin, efrapeptin, JBIR, piericidin, prunustatin, pyrvinium, rottlerin, valinomycin, versipelostatin) might act in a similar GRP78-independent fashion will be discussed

The neglect of herself in the process of Infatuation–Love

La presente investigación, de corte cualitativo, tiene como objetivo describir la forma como se vive el proceso de Enamoramiento-Amor en una población de mujeres universitarias del Estado de México. Se desarrolló en dos momentos, primero mediante la técnica de Redes Semánticas se indagó sobre lo que conciben como amor, enamoramiento y manifestaciones de éstos. A partir de estos resultados, se eligió a las informantes clave; a quienes en un segundo momento se aplicó una entrevista semiestructurada, que profundiza en los conocimientos, comportamiento y el tipo de emociones que se viven en el proceso de Enamoramiento-Amor. Los hallazgos muestran que las mujeres universitarias en el proceso de Enamoramiento parten de la idealización del otro, no perciben sus defectos o bien se toleran; el comportamiento que se asume se encuentra ligado al deber ser del amor, donde todo es justificado y perdonado en nombre de este sentimiento. En la etapa de amor, se presentan conductas de protección y cuidado hacia el otro, dejando en último las propias necesidades. Las informantes señalan que en el amor se generan sentimientos ambivalentes de extrema felicidad y sufrimiento al tener que tolerar violencia física y psicológica por parte de la pareja, esto coincide con la concepción de Fromm acerca del amor como fundamental en el ser humano, donde se debe aprender y ejercitar poniendo en juego toda la personalidad, implica asumir una actitud positiva, una orientación de carácter, un acto de voluntad y compromiso hacía el otro; aunque en este caso no sea recíproco

Experimental constraints on a dark matter origin for the DAMA annual modulation effect

A claim for evidence of dark matter interactions in the DAMA experiment has been recently reinforced. We employ a new type of germanium detector to conclusively rule out a standard isothermal galactic halo of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) as the explanation for the annual modulation effect leading to the claim. Bounds are similarly imposed on a suggestion that dark pseudoscalars mightlead to the effect. We describe the sensitivity to light dark matter particles achievable with our device, in particular to Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Model candidates.Comment: v4: introduces recent results from arXiv:0807.3279 and arXiv:0807.2926. Sensitivity to pseudoscalars is revised in light of the first. Discussion on the subject adde

Results from a Search for Light-Mass Dark Matter with a P-type Point Contact Germanium Detector

We report on several features present in the energy spectrum from an ultra low-noise germanium detector operated at 2,100 m.w.e. By implementing a new technique able to reject surface events, a number of cosmogenic peaks can be observed for the first time. We discuss several possible causes for an irreducible excess of bulk-like events below 3 keVee, including a dark matter candidate common to the DAMA/LIBRA annual modulation effect, the hint of a signal in CDMS, and phenomenological predictions. Improved constraints are placed on a cosmological origin for the DAMA/LIBRA effect.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. v2: submitted version. Minimal changes in wording, one reference adde

A γ-secretase inhibitor, but not a γ-secretase modulator, induced defects in BDNF axonal trafficking and signaling: evidence for a role for APP.

Clues to Alzheimer disease (AD) pathogenesis come from a variety of different sources including studies of clinical and neuropathological features, biomarkers, genomics and animal and cellular models. An important role for amyloid precursor protein (APP) and its processing has emerged and considerable interest has been directed at the hypothesis that Aβ peptides induce changes central to pathogenesis. Accordingly, molecules that reduce the levels of Aβ peptides have been discovered such as γ-secretase inhibitors (GSIs) and modulators (GSMs). GSIs and GSMs reduce Aβ levels through very different mechanisms. However, GSIs, but not GSMs, markedly increase the levels of APP CTFs that are increasingly viewed as disrupting neuronal function. Here, we evaluated the effects of GSIs and GSMs on a number of neuronal phenotypes possibly relevant to their use in treatment of AD. We report that GSI disrupted retrograde axonal trafficking of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), suppressed BDNF-induced downstream signaling pathways and induced changes in the distribution within neuronal processes of mitochondria and synaptic vesicles. In contrast, treatment with a novel class of GSMs had no significant effect on these measures. Since knockdown of APP by specific siRNA prevented GSI-induced changes in BDNF axonal trafficking and signaling, we concluded that GSI effects on APP processing were responsible, at least in part, for BDNF trafficking and signaling deficits. Our findings argue that with respect to anti-amyloid treatments, even an APP-specific GSI may have deleterious effects and GSMs may serve as a better alternative