La importancia del córtex parietal superior en la aparición del arte y el desarrollo cognitivo: El origen del arte con relación al córtex parietal superior

L'objectiu principal d'aquest treball és estudiar la relació del còrtex parietal superior (CPS) amb l'aparició de l'art, per explorar el potencial de l'art com a eina educativa i terapèutica a la infància. Per això s'ha dut a terme una revisió sistemàtica a diverses bases de dades com Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct i Google Scholar. L'estratègia de cerca es va basar en explorar les paraules clau següents: Art, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Mitjançant l'estratègia d'exploració bibliogràfica es van trobar en total 420 estudis, dels quals una vegada aplicats els criteris d'inclusió i exclusió només se'n van incloure 20 en aquest article. En aquesta selecció, es va observar que les categories tractades més explorades a l'hora d'abordar la relació entre art i cervell van ser: la mida cerebral i l'encefalització (27,27%), els efectes de la cuina i la dieta (22,73 %), el còrtex parietal superior (22,73%) i la cognició simbòlica (18,18%). Després de la revisió exhaustiva de la literatura científica, cal destacar que la varietat d'investigacions en matèria de neurociència, evolució anatòmica i desenvolupament cognitiu no són suficients per establir una relació directa entre l'increment del còrtex parietal superior i l'origen de l'art. Tot i així, l'aparició de l'art durant el procés d'encefalització de l'espècie humana ens porta a preguntar-nos si l'art pot ser un potenciador del desenvolupament cognitiu i no només una conseqüència de l'encefalització humana. Si fos així, una major inclusió de l'art a les aules i de la teràpia artística als Centres de Desenvolupament Infantil i Atenció Precoç (CDIAP) podria guardar relació amb la configuració cognitiva futura.The main objective of this work is to study the relationship of the superior parietal cortex (CPS) with the appearance of art, to explore the potential of art as an educational and therapeutic tool in childhood. A systematic review has been carried out in databases such as Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct and Google Scholar. The search strategy was based on exploring the following keywords: Art, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Through the literature exploration strategy, a total of 420 studies were found. After inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied, only 20 were included in the present article. In this selection, it was observed that the most explored categories treated when addressing the relationship between art and brain were brain size and encephalization (27.27%), the effects of cooking and diet (22.73 %), the superior parietal cortex (22.73%) and symbolic cognition (18.18%). After an exhaustive review of the scientific literature, it should be noted that the variety of investigations in neuroscience, anatomical evolution and cognitive development are not enough to establish a direct relationship between the increase in the superior parietal cortex and the origin of art. Even so, the appearance of art during the encephalization process of the human species leads us to wonder if it is possible that art can be an enhancer of cognitive development and not just a consequence of human encephalization. If so, a greater inclusion of art in the classroom and of art therapy in the Centers for Child Development and Early Attention (CDIAP in Catalonia) could be related to the future cognitive configuration.El principal objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar la relación del córtex parietal superior (CPS) con la aparición del arte, para explorar el potencial del arte como herramienta educativa y terapéutica en la infancia. Para ello se he llevado a cabo una revisión sistemática en diversas bases de datos como Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct i Google Scholar. La estrategia de búsqueda se basó en explorar las siguientes palabras claves: Arte, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Mediante la estrategia de exploración bibliográfica fueron hallados en total 420 estudios, de los cuales una vez aplicados los criterios de inclusión y exclusión sólo se incluyeron 20 en el presente artículo. En esta selección, se observó que las categorías tratadas más exploradas a la hora de abordar la relación entre arte y cerebro fueron: el tamaño cerebral y la encefalización (27,27%), los efectos de la cocina y la dieta (22,73%), el córtex parietal superior (22,73%) y la cognición simbólica (18,18%). Tras la revisión exhaustiva de la literatura científica cabe destacar que la variedad de investigaciones en materia de neurociencia, evolución anatómica y desarrollo cognitivo no son suficientes para establecer una relación directa entre el incremento del córtex parietal superior y el origen del arte. Aun así, la aparición del arte durante el proceso de encefalización de la especie humana nos lleva a preguntarnos si es posible que el arte pueda ser un potenciador del desarrollo cognitivo y no sólo una consecuencia de la encefalización humana. De ser así, una mayor inclusión del arte en las aulas y de la terapia artística en los Centros de Desarrollo Infantil y Atención Precoz (CDIAP) podría guardar relación con la configuración cognitiva futura.&nbsp

La importancia del córtex parietal superior en la aparición del arte y el desarrollo cognitivo

L'objectiu principal d'aquest treball és estudiar la relació del còrtex parietal superior (CPS) amb l'aparició de l'art, per explorar el potencial de l'art com a eina educativa i terapèutica a la infància. Per això s'ha dut a terme una revisió sistemàtica a diverses bases de dades com Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct i Google Scholar. L'estratègia de cerca es va basar en explorar les paraules clau següents: Art, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Mitjançant l'estratègia d'exploració bibliogràfica es van trobar en total 420 estudis, dels quals una vegada aplicats els criteris d'inclusió i exclusió només se'n van incloure 20 en aquest article. En aquesta selecció, es va observar que les categories tractades més explorades a l'hora d'abordar la relació entre art i cervell van ser: la mida cerebral i l'encefalització (27,27%), els efectes de la cuina i la dieta (22,73 %), el còrtex parietal superior (22,73%) i la cognició simbòlica (18,18%). Després de la revisió exhaustiva de la literatura científica, cal destacar que la varietat d'investigacions en matèria de neurociència, evolució anatòmica i desenvolupament cognitiu no són suficients per establir una relació directa entre l'increment del còrtex parietal superior i l'origen de l'art. Tot i així, l'aparició de l'art durant el procés d'encefalització de l'espècie humana ens porta a preguntar-nos si l'art pot ser un potenciador del desenvolupament cognitiu i no només una conseqüència de l'encefalització humana. Si fos així, una major inclusió de l'art a les aules i de la teràpia artística als Centres de Desenvolupament Infantil i Atenció Precoç (CDIAP) podria guardar relació amb la configuració cognitiva futura.The main objective of this work is to study the relationship of the superior parietal cortex (CPS) with the appearance of art, to explore the potential of art as an educational and therapeutic tool in childhood. A systematic review has been carried out in databases such as Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct and Google Scholar. The search strategy was based on exploring the following keywords: Art, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Through the literature exploration strategy, a total of 420 studies were found. After inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied, only 20 were included in the present article. In this selection, it was observed that the most explored categories treated when addressing the relationship between art and brain were brain size and encephalization (27.27%), the effects of cooking and diet (22.73 %), the superior parietal cortex (22.73%) and symbolic cognition (18.18%). After an exhaustive review of the scientific literature, it should be noted that the variety of investigations in neuroscience, anatomical evolution and cognitive development are not enough to establish a direct relationship between the increase in the superior parietal cortex and the origin of art. Even so, the appearance of art during the encephalization process of the human species leads us to wonder if it is possible that art can be an enhancer of cognitive development and not just a consequence of human encephalization. If so, a greater inclusion of art in the classroom and of art therapy in the Centers for Child Development and Early Attention (CDIAP in Catalonia) could be related to the future cognitive configuration.El principal objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar la relación del córtex parietal superior (CPS) con la aparición del arte, para explorar el potencial del arte como herramienta educativa y terapéutica en la infancia. Para ello se he llevado a cabo una revisión sistemática en diversas bases de datos como Pubmed, TripDataBase, Science Direct i Google Scholar. La estrategia de búsqueda se basó en explorar las siguientes palabras claves: Arte, Brain, Evolution, Superior Parietal Cortex, Symbolism, Cognition. Mediante la estrategia de exploración bibliográfica fueron hallados en total 420 estudios, de los cuales una vez aplicados los criterios de inclusión y exclusión sólo se incluyeron 20 en el presente artículo. En esta selección, se observó que las categorías tratadas más exploradas a la hora de abordar la relación entre arte y cerebro fueron: el tamaño cerebral y la encefalización (27,27%), los efectos de la cocina y la dieta (22,73%), el córtex parietal superior (22,73%) y la cognición simbólica (18,18%). Tras la revisión exhaustiva de la literatura científica cabe destacar que la variedad de investigaciones en materia de neurociencia, evolución anatómica y desarrollo cognitivo no son suficientes para establecer una relación directa entre el incremento del córtex parietal superior y el origen del arte. Aun así, la aparición del arte durante el proceso de encefalización de la especie humana nos lleva a preguntarnos si es posible que el arte pueda ser un potenciador del desarrollo cognitivo y no sólo una consecuencia de la encefalización humana. De ser así, una mayor inclusión del arte en las aulas y de la terapia artística en los Centros de Desarrollo Infantil y Atención Precoz (CDIAP) podría guardar relación con la configuración cognitiva futura

FleQ, FleN and c-di-GMP coordinately regulate cellulose production in Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000

The second messenger cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) controls the transition between motility and sessility in many bacterial species by a variety of mechanisms, including the production of multiple exopolysaccharides. Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pto) DC3000 is a plant pathogenic bacteria able to synthesize acetylated cellulose under high c-di-GMP levels thanks to the expression of the wssABCDEFGHI operon. Increased cellulose production enhances air-liquid biofilm formation and generates a wrinkled colony phenotype on solid media. We previously showed that under low levels of c-di-GMP, the regulators FleQ and AmrZ bound to adjacent sequences at the wss promoter inhibiting its expression, but only FleQ responded to the presence of c-di-GMP by activating cellulose production. In the present work, we advance in the knowledge of this complex regulation in Pto DC3000 by shedding light over the role of FleN in this process. The distinctive features of this system are that FleN and FleQ are both required for repression and activation of the wss operon under low and high c-di-GMP levels, respectively. We have also identified three putative FleQ binding sites at the wss promoter and show that FleQ/FleN-ATP binds at those sites under low c-di-GMP levels, inducing a distortion of DNA, impairing RNA polymerase binding, and repressing wss transcription. However, binding of c-di-GMP induces a conformational change in the FleQ/FleN-ATP complex, which relieves the DNA distortion, allows promoter access to the RNA polymerase, and leads to activation of wss transcription. On the other hand, AmrZ is always bound at the wss promoter limiting its expression independently of FleQ, FleN and c-di-GMP levels

HDSTART

Máster en Dirección de la Empresa Audiovisual. Curso 2009/201

Opportunistic Community Screening of Chronic Chagas Disease Using a Rapid Diagnosis Test in Pharmacies in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain): Study Protocol and Pilot Phase Results

Chagas disease; Community pharmacies; Rapid testEnfermedad de Chagas; Farmacias comunitarias; Test rapidoMalaltia de Chagas; Farmàcies comunitàries; Prova ràpidaObjectives: This study aimed to report the protocol and results from the pilot phase of an opportunistic CP-based CD screening program in Barcelona, Spain. Methods: Three strategies according to recruitment approach were designed: passive, active and active-community. The study process consisted of signing the informed consent form, recording the patient’s data in a web-based database system, and performing the rapid test and blood collection on dry paper. Results: Nineteen pharmacies participated and 64 patients were included during the pilot phase of the study. The rapid diagnostic test (RDT) was positive in 2/64 (3.13%) cases. Of the 49 DBS samples that arrived at the laboratory, 22 (45%) were collected incorrectly. After quantitative and qualitative assessment of the program, the dry paper sample and passive strategy were ruled out. Conclusion: DBS sampling and the passive strategy are not suitable for CD screening in community pharmacies. There is a need to expand the number of participating pharmacies and individuals to determine whether conducting a RDT in community pharmacies is an effective screening method to increase access to CD diagnosis in a non-endemic area.This work has been supported by the Fundació la Marató TV3 (project number 481/U/2018)

Role of age and comorbidities in mortality of patients with infective endocarditis

[Purpose]: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of patients with IE in three groups of age and to assess the ability of age and the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) to predict mortality. [Methods]: Prospective cohort study of all patients with IE included in the GAMES Spanish database between 2008 and 2015.Patients were stratified into three age groups:<65 years,65 to 80 years,and ≥ 80 years.The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was calculated to quantify the diagnostic accuracy of the CCI to predict mortality risk. [Results]: A total of 3120 patients with IE (1327 < 65 years;1291 65-80 years;502 ≥ 80 years) were enrolled.Fever and heart failure were the most common presentations of IE, with no differences among age groups.Patients ≥80 years who underwent surgery were significantly lower compared with other age groups (14.3%,65 years; 20.5%,65-79 years; 31.3%,≥80 years). In-hospital mortality was lower in the <65-year group (20.3%,<65 years;30.1%,65-79 years;34.7%,≥80 years;p < 0.001) as well as 1-year mortality (3.2%, <65 years; 5.5%, 65-80 years;7.6%,≥80 years; p = 0.003).Independent predictors of mortality were age ≥ 80 years (hazard ratio [HR]:2.78;95% confidence interval [CI]:2.32–3.34), CCI ≥ 3 (HR:1.62; 95% CI:1.39–1.88),and non-performed surgery (HR:1.64;95% CI:11.16–1.58).When the three age groups were compared,the AUROC curve for CCI was significantly larger for patients aged <65 years(p < 0.001) for both in-hospital and 1-year mortality. [Conclusion]: There were no differences in the clinical presentation of IE between the groups. Age ≥ 80 years, high comorbidity (measured by CCI),and non-performance of surgery were independent predictors of mortality in patients with IE.CCI could help to identify those patients with IE and surgical indication who present a lower risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortality after surgery, especially in the <65-year group

Treatment with tocilizumab or corticosteroids for COVID-19 patients with hyperinflammatory state: a multicentre cohort study (SAM-COVID-19)

Objectives: The objective of this study was to estimate the association between tocilizumab or corticosteroids and the risk of intubation or death in patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) with a hyperinflammatory state according to clinical and laboratory parameters. Methods: A cohort study was performed in 60 Spanish hospitals including 778 patients with COVID-19 and clinical and laboratory data indicative of a hyperinflammatory state. Treatment was mainly with tocilizumab, an intermediate-high dose of corticosteroids (IHDC), a pulse dose of corticosteroids (PDC), combination therapy, or no treatment. Primary outcome was intubation or death; follow-up was 21 days. Propensity score-adjusted estimations using Cox regression (logistic regression if needed) were calculated. Propensity scores were used as confounders, matching variables and for the inverse probability of treatment weights (IPTWs). Results: In all, 88, 117, 78 and 151 patients treated with tocilizumab, IHDC, PDC, and combination therapy, respectively, were compared with 344 untreated patients. The primary endpoint occurred in 10 (11.4%), 27 (23.1%), 12 (15.4%), 40 (25.6%) and 69 (21.1%), respectively. The IPTW-based hazard ratios (odds ratio for combination therapy) for the primary endpoint were 0.32 (95%CI 0.22-0.47; p < 0.001) for tocilizumab, 0.82 (0.71-1.30; p 0.82) for IHDC, 0.61 (0.43-0.86; p 0.006) for PDC, and 1.17 (0.86-1.58; p 0.30) for combination therapy. Other applications of the propensity score provided similar results, but were not significant for PDC. Tocilizumab was also associated with lower hazard of death alone in IPTW analysis (0.07; 0.02-0.17; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Tocilizumab might be useful in COVID-19 patients with a hyperinflammatory state and should be prioritized for randomized trials in this situatio

Prospective individual patient data meta-analysis of two randomized trials on convalescent plasma for COVID-19 outpatients

Data on convalescent plasma (CP) treatment in COVID-19 outpatients are scarce. We aimed to assess whether CP administered during the first week of symptoms reduced the disease progression or risk of hospitalization of outpatients. Two multicenter, double-blind randomized trials (NCT04621123, NCT04589949) were merged with data pooling starting when = 50 years and symptomatic for <= 7days were included. The intervention consisted of 200-300mL of CP with a predefined minimum level of antibodies. Primary endpoints were a 5-point disease severity scale and a composite of hospitalization or death by 28 days. Amongst the 797 patients included, 390 received CP and 392 placebo; they had a median age of 58 years, 1 comorbidity, 5 days symptoms and 93% had negative IgG antibody-test. Seventy-four patients were hospitalized, 6 required mechanical ventilation and 3 died. The odds ratio (OR) of CP for improved disease severity scale was 0.936 (credible interval (CI) 0.667-1.311); OR for hospitalization or death was 0.919 (CI 0.592-1.416). CP effect on hospital admission or death was largest in patients with <= 5 days of symptoms (OR 0.658, 95%CI 0.394-1.085). CP did not decrease the time to full symptom resolution