348 research outputs found

    Identidades en tránsito: la (supra)nación en narrativa, cine y espacios de difusión cultural latinoamericanos del siglo XXI

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    This dissertation focuses on Latin American novels, films, and anthologies of short narratives of the twenty-first century that reflect on the construct and questioning of national and regional identities. The texts I study rely on motifs related to movement that establish an allegorical relationship between mobility and nation building. While nation building in Latin America has been occurring for more than two centuries, the works I examine reveal that it is still an important topic to address in the present, because when faced with the effects of globalization, the same idea of nation is either challenged or shored up. As a result, it is necessary to examine how transnational and postnational discourses influence the different constructs of the nation, and vice versa. In the first chapter I analyze the motif of the return in the novels La novela de mi vida (2002), by Cuban Leonardo Padura, and El testigo (2004), by Mexican Juan Villoro. In both works, the main characters return to their land of origin after a long exile to research events and figures from the past. While doing so, they revisit the constructions of their own identity, and the official discourses of their nations. Chapter two focuses on a figurative mobility represented in formation films from the same countries. In the Cuban section, I argue that children protagonists of Viva Cuba (Juan Carlos Cremata, 2005), Habanastation (Ian Padrón, 2011) and Conducta (Ernesto Daranas, 2014), embody new ways of perceiving the concept of the “Hombre Nuevo” by Ernesto Che Guevara, and their coming-of-age represents the transition that the island is experiencing during the first years of the new millennium. On the Mexican side, the films explored are Temporada de Patos (Fernando Eimbcke, 2004), Después de Lucía (Michel Franco, 2012) and Güeros (Alonso Ruiz Palacios, 2015), whose adolescent protagonists are facing a critical moment in their process of maturation, representative of the nation’s political and social stage. Finally, after dealing with motifs of return and internal travelling (transformation), the third and last chapter is pinned to the trope of migration, specifically the Latin American intellectual diaspora in the United States. The anthologies Se habla español: Voces latinas en USA (2000), edited by Alberto Fuguet and Edmundo Paz Soldán, and Sam no es mi tío. Veinticuatro crónicas migrantes y un sueño americano (2012), edited by Aileen El-Kadi and Diego Fonseca, participate in the construction of a supranational identity supported by the academia and the market. They also serve as an example of spaces of cultural dissemination that are trying to portray the Latin American experience in the United States. Therefore, this project contributes to critical research on mobility, historiography, postcolonial theory, film and cultural studies of Latin America. It follows a deductive and growing pattern, from the nation to the supranation, to show the common factors that produce national identities, and how they are being manifested during the first years of the twenty-first century

    Tropical Cyclone Landfall Frequency and Large-Scale Environmental Impacts along Karstic Coastal Regions (Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico)

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    Tropical cyclones (TCs) are natural systems that develop over ocean basins and are key components of the atmospheric activity during the warm season. However, there are still knowledge gaps about the combined positive and negative TC impacts on the structure and function of coastal socio-ecosystems. Using remote sensing tools, we analyzed the frequency, trajectory, and intensity of 1894 TCs from 1851-2019 to identify vulnerable hotspots across the Yucatan Peninsula (YP), Mexico. A total of 151 events hit the YP, with 96% of landings on the eastern coast. We focused on three major hurricanes (Emily and Wilma, 2005; Dean, 2007) and one tropical storm (Stan, 2005) to determine the impacts on cumulative precipitation, vegetation change, and coastal phytoplankton (Chl-a) distribution across the YP. Despite a short inland incursion, Wilma\u27s environmental damage was coupled to strong winds (157-241 km/h), slow motion (4-9 km/h), and heavy precipitation (up to 770 mm). Because of an extensive footprint, Wilma caused more vegetation damage (29%) than Dean (20%), Emily (7%), and Stan (2%). All TCs caused a Chl-aincrease associated to submarine discharge and upwelling off the peninsula coastlines. Disaster risk along the coast underscores negative economic impacts and positive ecological benefits at the regional scale

    Criterios de implementación ISO 14000: 2015 Caso de estudio empresa Ecocapital E.S.P.

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    Fuente (Ecocapital, Prestación de Gestión Externa RHYS Ecocapital, 2014),Al realizar la auditoria interna se puede apreciar que Ecocapital cuenta con un equipo humano capacitado y especializado en el manejo integral de residuos hospitalarios y similares, la implementación de los equipos y maquinaria con tecnología de punta que logra realizar un seguimiento y control eficaz a las rutas de recolección de los residuos sólidos peligrosos, cada flota vehicular es monitoreada de manera constante ya que cuenta con un sistema de GPS, prácticamente desde su salida hasta su regreso a la empresa, esta actividad de monitoreo se realiza en un salón con pantallas de alta resolución. En cuanto al sistema de tratamiento de los residuos hospitalarios y similares, la entidad es pionera en esta actividad, mostrando dentro de sus alcances una cultura responsable con el medio ambiente, los diferentes usuarios y la comunidad en general, por lo que a través de capacitaciones sobre el servicio refleja el compromiso de responsabilidad social empresarial. En el año 2004 Ecocapital inicia operaciones en Bogotá, Distrito Capital, prestando sus servicios de recolección, transporte, tratamiento y disposición final de residuos de riesgo biológico, generados por todos los actores bajo el contrato 02 de 2004; gracias a la excelencia en la prestación del servicio, la organización fue seleccionada para continuar con la prestación de dicho servicio a través del contrato 186E de 2011. Revisando los documentos legales Ecocapital actualmente cuenta con las siguientes certificaciones: normas de Gestión de Calidad NTC GP 1000:2009 e ISO 9001:2008, Gestión Ambiental ISO 14001:2004 y Sistema de Gestión en Seguridad y Salud Ocupacional OHSAS 18001:2007, garantizando de esta manera la eficiencia de los procesos que conlleva sus servicios, la protección al medio ambiente y la seguridad de los colaboradores y contratistas.This Article describes the collection, treatment and final disposal of solid waste, in the city of Bogotá D.C. by the Ecocapital company, through sterilization and incineration

    Comparison of Mechanical and Structural Properties of Nickel-titanium Alloy with Titanium-molybdenum Alloy and Titanium-niobium Alloy as Potential Metals for Endodontic Files

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    Introduction: The objective of this study was to compare the mechanical and structural properties of the nickel-titanium (Ni-Ti) alloy already used in endodontics with titanium-molybdenum (Ti-Mo) and titanium-niobium (Ti-Nb) alloys to determine if these can be suggested in the manufacture of endodontic files. Methods and Materials: Orthodontic wires made of the different alloys were used. The previously mentioned alloys were characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and torsion tests. Cyclic fatigue tests were performed on a simulated canal with a curvature of 86° to 375 rpm. The fractured surfaces of the wires were observed by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A Kruskal-Wallis test and U Mann Whitney test were used to determine significant differences in cyclic fatigue between groups. Results: In the mechanical tests, similar values of torsion were found for the three alloys. In XRD, the Ti-Nb showed less structural changes. In the cyclic fatigue test, Ti-Nb was found to be significantly more resistant with respect to Ni-Ti and Ti-Mo. Conclusion: Based on our in vitro study, Ti-Nb is suggested as a possible alloy for the manufacture of rotary files due to its impressive properties

    Fanconi anemia cells with unrepaired DNA damage activate components of the checkpoint recovery process

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    International audienceBACKGROUND:The FA/BRCA pathway repairs DNA interstrand crosslinks. Mutations in this pathway cause Fanconi anemia (FA), a chromosome instability syndrome with bone marrow failure and cancer predisposition. Upon DNA damage, normal and FA cells inhibit the cell cycle progression, until the G2/M checkpoint is turned off by the checkpoint recovery, which becomes activated when the DNA damage has been repaired. Interestingly, highly damaged FA cells seem to override the G2/M checkpoint. In this study we explored with a Boolean network model and key experiments whether checkpoint recovery activation occurs in FA cells with extensive unrepaired DNA damage.METHODS:We performed synchronous/asynchronous simulations of the FA/BRCA pathway Boolean network model. FA-A and normal lymphoblastoid cell lines were used to study checkpoint and checkpoint recovery activation after DNA damage induction. The experimental approach included flow cytometry cell cycle analysis, cell division tracking, chromosome aberration analysis and gene expression analysis through qRT-PCR and western blot.RESULTS:Computational simulations suggested that in FA mutants checkpoint recovery activity inhibits the checkpoint components despite unrepaired DNA damage, a behavior that we did not observed in wild-type simulations. This result implies that FA cells would eventually reenter the cell cycle after a DNA damage induced G2/M checkpoint arrest, but before the damage has been fixed. We observed that FA-A cells activate the G2/M checkpoint and arrest in G2 phase, but eventually reach mitosis and divide with unrepaired DNA damage, thus resolving the initial checkpoint arrest. Based on our model result we look for ectopic activity of checkpoint recovery components. We found that checkpoint recovery components, such as PLK1, are expressed to a similar extent as normal undamaged cells do, even though FA-A cells harbor highly damaged DNA.CONCLUSIONS:Our results show that FA cells, despite extensive DNA damage, do not loss the capacity to express the transcriptional and protein components of checkpoint recovery that might eventually allow their division with unrepaired DNA damage. This might allow cell survival but increases the genomic instability inherent to FA individuals and promotes cancer

    Use of Biomarkers to Improve 28-Day Mortality Stratification in Patients with Sepsis and SOFA ≤ 6

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    Molecular diagnosis; Mortality; Sepsis biomarkersDiagnóstico molecular; Mortalidad; Biomarcadores de sepsisDiagnòstic molecular; Mortalitat; Biomarcadors de sèpsiaEarly diagnosis and appropriate treatments are crucial to reducing mortality risk in septic patients. Low SOFA scores and current biomarkers may not adequately discern patients that could develop severe organ dysfunction or have an elevated mortality risk. The aim of this prospective observational study was to evaluate the predictive value of the biomarkers mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin (MR-proADM), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), and lactate for 28-day mortality in patients with sepsis, and patients with a SOFA score ≤6. 284 were included, with a 28-day all-cause mortality of 8.45% (n = 24). Non-survivors were older (p = 0.003), required mechanical ventilation (p = 0.04), were ventilated for longer (p = 0.02), and had higher APACHE II (p = 0.015) and SOFA (p = 0.027) scores. Lactate showed the highest predictive ability for all-cause 28-day mortality, with an area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.67 (0.55–0.79). The AUROC for all-cause 28-day mortality in patients with community-acquired infection was 0.69 (0.57–0.84) for SOFA and 0.70 (0.58–0.82) for MR-proADM. A 2.1 nmol/L cut-off point for this biomarker in this subgroup of patients discerned, with 100% sensibility, survivors from non-survivors at 28 days. In patients with community-acquired sepsis and initial SOFA score ≤ 6, MR-proADM could help identify patients at risk of 28-day mortality.This research was funded by a restricted grant from Thermo Fisher (Hennigsdorf, Germany), consisting of free-of-charge kits. However, the funding organization had no role in the collection, management, analysis, or interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; or decision to submit the manuscript for publication

    Persistent HIV-controllers are more prone to spontaneously clear HCV: a retrospective cohort study.

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    HIV-controllers have the ability to spontaneously maintain viraemia at low or undetectable levels in the absence of antiretroviral treatment. Furthermore, HIV-controllers seem to have a superior capacity to spontaneously clear hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared to non HIV-controllers. Some of these subjects eventually lose HIV-controller status (transient controllers), whereas some HIV-controllers show a persistent natural HIV control (persistent controllers). We aimed to analyse whether persistent controllers have superior capacity to spontaneously clear HCV compared to transient controllers. We recruited HIV-controllers from January 1981 up to October 2016 with available antibodies to HCV (anti-HCV) data (n = 744). Factors associated with HIV spontaneous control in relation to HCV status were analysed in persistent and transient HIV-controllers with anti-HCV positive (n = 202 and n = 138 respectively) in comparison with 1700 HCV positive non HIV-controllers recruited from January 1981 up to March 2018, bivariate and multivariate analyses, following a logistic regression model, were applied. In addition, the factors related to the loss and time to lose HIV-controller status were explored (n = 744) using Log rank test and Kaplan-Meier curves, in this case the multivariate analysis consisted in a Cox regression model. A higher frequency of HCV spontaneous clearance was found in persistent HIV-controllers (25.5%) compared to non-controllers (10.2%). After adjusting for potential confounders, as sex, age, HIV transmission risk, CD4+ T-cell nadir and time of follow-up, HCV clearance was independently associated with persistent HIV spontaneous control (p = 0.002; OR (95% CI) = 2.573 (1.428 to 4.633)), but not with transient spontaneous control (p = 0.119; 1.589 (0.888 to 2.845)). Furthermore, persistent HIV-controllers were more likely to spontaneously clear the HCV in comparison with transient controllers (p = 0.027; 0.377 (0.159 to 0.893). Finally, not to lose or lengthen the time of losing this control was independently associated with HCV spontaneous clearance (p = 0.010; 0.503 (0.297 to 0.850). This study shows an association between spontaneous persistent HIV-control and HCV spontaneous clearance. The study findings support the idea of preserved immune mechanisms in persistent HIV control implicated in HCV spontaneous clearance. These results highlight persistent HIV-controllers but not transient controllers as a good model of functional HIV cure.This work was supported by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (research contracts CPII014/00025 to E.R.‐M., and FI14/00431 to L.T.‐D. and research projects PI12/02283, PI16/00684, PI19/01127 to E.R.‐M.) and Red Temática de Investigación Cooperativa en SIDA (Projects RD12/0017/0029, RD12/0017/0031, and RD16/0025/0020 and RD16/0025/0013), which is included in the Acción Estratégica en Salud, Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica 2008 to 2011 and 2013 to 2016, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Fondos FEDER. E.R.‐M. was supported by Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social of Junta de Andalucía through the Nicolás Monardes program (C‐0032/17), N Rallón is a Miguel Servet investigator from the Spanish Carlos III Institute of Health (ISCIII), grant CP14/00198, Madrid, Spain and B.D.M. received a grant from The Spanish Ministry of Education (FPU13/02451). Work in CL‐G’s laboratory was supported by grants SAF (2010 to 17226) and (2016‐77894‐R) from MINECO (Spain) and FIS (PI 13/02269, ISCIII) and in part by the RIS‐RETIC grants RD06/006/0036 and RD12/0017/0028 funded by the ISC III‐FEDER. MP has a contract of RIS‐RETIC RD12/0017/0036.S

    Influence of IL28B Polymorphisms on Response to a Lower-Than-Standard Dose peg-IFN-α 2a for Genotype 3 Chronic Hepatitis C in HIV-Coinfected Patients

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    Background: Data on which to base definitive recommendations on the doses and duration of therapy for genotype 3 HCV/HIV-coinfected patients are scarce. We evaluated the efficacy of a lower peginterferon-α 2a dose and a shorter duration of therapy than the current standard of care in genotype 3 HCV/HIV-coinfected patients. Methods and Findings: Pilot, open-label, single arm clinical trial which involved 58 Caucasian HCV/HIV-coinfected patients who received weekly 135 μg peginterferon-α 2a plus ribavirin 400 mg twice daily during 20 weeks after attaining undetectable viremia. The relationships between baseline patient-related variables, including IL28B genotype, plasma HCV-RNA, ribavirin dose/kg, peginterferon-α 2a and ribavirin levels with virological responses were analyzed. Only 4 patients showed lack of response and 5 patients dropped out due to adverse events related to the study medication. Overall, sustained virologic response (SVR) rates were 58.3% by intention-to-treat and 71.4% by per protocol analysis, respectively. Among patients with rapid virologic response (RVR), SVR and relapses rates were 92.6% and 7.4%, respectively. No relationships were observed between viral responses and ribavirin dose/kg, peginterferon-α 2a concentrations, ribavirin levels or rs129679860 genotype. Conclusions: Weekly 135 μg pegIFN-α 2a could be as effective as the standard 180 μg dose, with a very low incidence of severe adverse events. A 24-week treatment duration appears to be appropriate in patients achieving RVR, but extending treatment up to just 20 weeks beyond negativization of viremia is associated with a high relapse rate in those patients not achieving RVR. There was no influence of IL28B genotype on the virological responses. © 2012 López-Cortés et al.Funding provided by Fundación Pública Andaluza para la gestión de la Investigación en Salud de Sevilla. Hospitales Universitarios Virgen del Rocío. Seville, Spain. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay Hu-INF-α kits for determination of pegIFN-α-2a were financed by Roche Pharma, S.A. (Spain).Peer Reviewe
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