Museos y la integración de refugiados en el Reino Unido.

El proyecto analizado es parte de una investigación doctoral que examina los beneficios sociales, personales y psicosociales que los refugiados pueden derivar de las prácticas educativas de museos en el Reino Unido. Más específicamente el estudio investiga cómo los museos pueden fomentar la integración de los refugiados, contribuyendo a la eliminación de barreras derivadas de la falta de competencias lingüísticas y culturales. Con este fin, se analiza el trabajo realizado en los últimos 4 años por el Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts* con refugiados reasentados a través del Gateway Protection Programme, un esquema gestionado por el Home Office (Ministerio del Interior) y ACNUR (Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Refugiados).Se considera el museo como un ambiente de aprendizaje de libre elección para demostrar cómo los museos pueden contribuira desarrollar nuevos conocimientos y habilidades. Más concretamente, el proyecto explora cómo las colecciones de museos pueden estimular narrativas subjetivas acerca del proceso de integración, contribuyendo a adquirir habilidades culturales y lingüísticas. Los datos recogidos proceden de una amplia gama de metodologías cualitativas de investigación, que incluyen la observación participante en talleres y el análisis de las respuestas creativas a los objetos. Como consecuencia de la participación en dichas actividades, los participantes demostraron avances importantes en sus competencias lingüísticas y culturales. *El Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts es el museo universitario de la Universidad de East Anglia.www.scva.ac.uk Palabras claves: museos, refugiados, integración, capital social, capital humano, colecciones. Abstract: The case study analysed here is part of an on-going PhD project researching the social, personal and psychosocial benefits refugees might derive from museum-based activities. The study presented is particularly concerned with the way museums in Britain can encourage refugees’ integration, eliminating barriers particularly stemming from lack of linguistic and cultural competences. It analyses the work done in the last 4 years by the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts* with local refugees resettled in Norwich as part of the Gateway Protection Programme, a scheme jointly run by the Home Office and UNHCR (United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees).  I apply the idea of museums as free-choice learning settings to discuss how museums can support the provision of new knowledge and skills. More particularly, the case study explores how objects can be used as means to stimulate subjective narratives around the process of resettlement, contributing to gain cultural and linguistic skills. Data collected come from a range of qualitative research methodologies, including ethnographic participant observation of workshops and the analysis of creative responses to collections. As a consequence of their involvement in museum-based activities, research has so far demonstrated that participants reported relevant progress in their language and cultural competences. *The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts is the university museum of the University of East Anglia.www.scva.ac.uk. Key words: museums, refugees, integration, social capital, human capital, artefacts

Food Bioactives: Impact on Brain and Cardiometabolic Health-Findings from In Vitro to Human Studies

none2siModern society is currently (and probably more than ever) immersed in the changing concept of food, seeking the beneficial functions of foods rather than only as a mean to quench hunger and support basic nutritional needs. In this context, we are facing a change in the expectations that consumers have from food items, accompanied by an increased attention towards food bioactive derivatives with health boosting properties. These emerging perceptions of food as a key discriminant in human health are fueled by the already strong evidence linking unhealthy dietary patterns with the onset and progression of several chronic diseases, ranging from type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. On the contrary, functional foods and their bioactive components may represent a nutritional cornerstone to improve the quality of diet and ameliorate or prevent (in some cases) nutrition-related diseases. Bioactives are unlike pharmaceuticals (compounds used to alleviate symptoms and cure disease). Nevertheless, the latest findings indicate that the clear gap between the two products (bioactives and pharmaceuticals) is becoming narrower and in some cases, they are becoming interchangeable. In agreement with the aforementioned considerations, the interest of the general population with respect to functional foods containing bioactive molecules is in constant expansion, which provides an impetus for research in this field. Indeed, several studies, including in vitro investigations, clinical trials and observational studies related to food and dietary patterns have already identified, proposed and in some cases, challenged the mechanisms of action of food bioactive derivatives. Therefore, the main aim of this Special Issue was to provide an opportunity to bring together high-quality manuscripts that showcase the current knowledge in relation to food bioactives and their impact on brain and cardiometabolic health.openNaumovski, Nenad; Sergi, DomenicoNaumovski, Nenad; Sergi, Domenic

Exploring the potential of museums and their collections in working practices with refugees.

This thesis examines the complexities, conflicts and ethical dilemmas involved in the study of refugee resettlement, arguing that museums can play a fundamental role in current debates around asylum. The study presents a cross-disciplinary theoretical examination of the work developed in the last two decades by museums in Britain with and about refugees. It explores the tension between the asylum discourses constructed by museums and refugees’ personal narratives of resettlement, contributing to museological debates around human rights and person-centred methodologies in forced migration studies. I analyse the ambiguities surrounding the human rights discourses articulated by museums, drawing from an extensive survey undertaken across the museum sector and a study of the partnerships established with refugee advocacy organisations. One of the main conclusions reached is that museums have either romanticised exiles or pathologised refugees as traumatised subjects, subjugating human rights discourses to a logic of conditional belonging. Building on the analysis of a refugee community engagement project developed by the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts in Norwich, I explore the potential of object-centred practices in providing exiles with a symbolic resource to articulate their own experience of resettlement. I argue that this analysis can help museum scholars and practitioners to move beyond notions of locality and cultural specificity in their work with diaspora groups, bringing a fresh perspective to scholarly debates around the affective potential of museum objects and the embodied experiences they can trigger

The Role of Dietary Advanced Glycation End Products in Metabolic Dysfunction

Open Access via the Wiley Jisc Deal Funded by: Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO; Australia)Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Diet, microbiota, and the mucus layer: The guardians of our health

The intestinal tract is an ecosystem in which the resident microbiota lives in symbiosis with its host. This symbiotic relationship is key to maintaining overall health, with dietary habits of the host representing one of the main external factors shaping the microbiome-host relationship. Diets high in fiber and low in fat and sugars, as opposed to Western and high-fat diets, have been shown to have a beneficial effect on intestinal health by promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria, improve mucus barrier function and immune tolerance, while inhibiting pro-inflammatory responses and their downstream effects. On the contrary, diets low in fiber and high in fat and sugars have been associated with alterations in microbiota composition/functionality and the subsequent development of chronic diseases such as food allergies, inflammatory bowel disease, and metabolic disease. In this review, we provided an updated overview of the current understanding of the connection between diet, microbiota, and health, with a special focus on the role of Western and high-fat diets in shaping intestinal homeostasis by modulating the gut microbiota

Microalgae as a Nutraceutical Tool to Antagonize the Impairment of Redox Status Induced by SNPs: Implications on Insulin Resistance

Microalgae represent a growing innovative source of nutraceuticals such as carotenoids and phenolic compound which are naturally present within these single-celled organisms or can be induced in response to specific growth conditions. The presence of the unfavourable allelic variant in genes involved in the control of oxidative stress, due to one or more SNPs in gene encoding protein involved in the regulation of redox balance, can lead to pathological conditions such as insulin resistance, which, in turn, is directly involved in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this review we provide an overview of the main SNPs in antioxidant genes involved in the promotion of insulin resistance with a focus on the potential role of microalgae-derived antioxidant molecules as novel nutritional tools to mitigate oxidative stress and improve insulin sensitivity

Dietary patterns, caloric restrictions for management of cardiovascular disease and cancer; a brief review

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancers are overall still identified as the two most prevalent non-communicable diseases globally. Their prevention and potential reversal (in particular CVD risk) was seen effective with the modification of dietary intake that was applied in several different populations. Although the findings from epidemiological studies provide support that adhering to dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean diet can reduce incidence and prevalence of CVD and some forms of cancer, the mechanistic aspects of disease modulation associated with both diseases can be seen in dietary management. Several studies have already explored the potential modes of action of certain nutrients in well controlled large clinical trials. However, the clinical trials designed to determine the effects of adhering to a particular diet are relatively hard to conduct and these studies are faced with several obstacles particularly in the populations that are identified with a high risk of CVD or different cancers. Therefore, it is important to understand potential underlying and shared mechanisms of action and to explore how healthy dietary patterns may modulate the occurrence, initiation, and progression of such diseases. The aim of this review is to summarise and conceptualize the current understanding relating to healthy dietary patterns, and briefly discuss the opportunities that epigenetic research may bring and how it may assist to further interpret epidemiological and clinical evidence

Glucose variability: a new risk factor for cardiovascular disease

Aims and data synthesis: glucose variability (GV) is increasingly considered an additional index of glycemic control. Growing evidence indicates that GV is associated with diabetic vascular complications, thus being a relevant point to address in diabetes management. GV can be measured using various parameters, but to date, a gold standard has not been identified. This underscores the need for further studies in this field also to identify the optimal treatment. Conclusions: We reviewed the definition of GV, the pathogenetic mechanisms of atherosclerosis, and its relationship with diabetic complications