Violencia de pareja en el contexto psicojurídico ecuatoriano: un estudio de caso

The study "Partnership violence in the Ecuadorian psycholegal context: a case study" focuses on the problem of violence in couple relationships in the legal and psychological context of Ecuador. Linked to the above, the general objective of the study is proposed to conceptually, theoretically and scientifically substantiate the variables involved in the case of intimate partner violence. The methodology used was based on the semi-structured interview for victims of domestic abuse, psycho-diagnostic tests, State-Trait Anxiety Questionnaire (STAI/IDARE, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI II); Scale for predicting the risk of serious violence against the couple-Revised-(EVP-R) and the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity Scale [forensic version] (EGS-F).The complaint, filed by the expert, was granted to the Judicial Council. The results generated by the expertise applied in the case study show altered affective functions, lack of concentration, difficulty falling asleep, characteristics associated with the cycle of violence. It was concluded that the expert lady manifested symptoms that are compatible with a condition anxiety syndrome, although it has not developed psychological damage in a sequelae mode, however, as a psychological injury that interferes with the areas of your social, work, and family life, it is recommended to maintain protective measures and continue with psychological assistance.El estudio "Violencia de pareja en el contexto psicojurídico ecuatoriano: un estudio de caso" se centra en la problemática de la violencia en las relaciones de pareja en el contexto legal y psicológico de Ecuador. Vinculado a lo precedente se propone como objetivo general del estudio Fundamentar conceptual, teórica y científicamente las variables implicadas en el caso de violencia de pareja. La metodología empleada se fundamentó en la entrevista semiestructurada para víctimas de maltrato doméstico, Pruebas psico diagnósticas, Cuestionario de Ansiedad Estado-Rasgo (STAI/IDARE, Inventario Multifásico de Personalidad de Minnesota (MMPI II); Escala de predicción del riesgo de violencia grave contra la pareja-Revisada-(EVP-R) y la Escala de Gravedad de Síntomas del Trastorno de Estrés Postraumático [versión forense] (EGS-F). Se accedió a la denuncia, interpuesta por la peritada, en el Consejo de la Judicatura. Los resultados generados por la pericia aplicada en el estudio de caso, presenta funciones afectivas alteradas, falta de concentración, dificultad, para conciliar el sueño, características asociadas al ciclo de violencia, Se concluyó que la señora periciada manifestó sintomatologías que son compatibles con un cuadro sindrómico de ansiedad, aunque no ha desarrollado un daño psicológico en modalidad secuela, sin embargo, sí a modo de lesión psicológica que interfiere con las áreas de su vida social, laboral, familiar, se recomienda mantener medidas de protección y seguir con asistencia psicológica

Inflammation induced by influenza virus impairs human innate immune control of pneumococcus

Secondary bacterial pneumonia following influenza infection is a significant cause of mortality worldwide. Upper respiratory tract pneumococcal carriage is important as both determinants of disease and population transmission. The immunological mechanisms that contain pneumococcal carriage are well-studied in mice but remain unclear in humans. Loss of this control of carriage following influenza infection is associated with secondary bacterial pneumonia during seasonal and pandemic outbreaks. We used a human type 6B pneumococcal challenge model to show that carriage acquisition induces early degranulation of resident neutrophils and recruitment of monocytes to the nose. Monocyte function associated with clearance of pneumococcal carriage. Prior nasal infection with live attenuated influenza virus induced inflammation, impaired innate function and altered genome-wide nasal gene responses to pneumococcal carriage. Levels of the cytokine IP-10 promoted by viral infection at the time of pneumococcal encounter was positively associated with bacterial density. These findings provide novel insights in nasal immunity to pneumococcus and viral-bacterial interactions during co-infection

Trypanosoma brucei colonizes the tsetse gut via an immature peritrophic matrix in the proventriculus

The peritrophic matrix of blood-feeding insects is a chitinous structure that forms a protective barrier against oral pathogens and abrasive particles1. Tsetse flies transmit Trypanosoma brucei, which is the parasite that causes human sleeping sickness and is also partially responsible for animal trypanosomiasis in Sub-Saharan Africa. For this parasite to establish an infection in flies, it must first colonize the area between the peritrophic matrix and gut epithelium called the ectoperitrophic space. Although unproven, it is generally accepted that trypanosomes reach the ectoperitrophic space by penetrating the peritrophic matrix in the anterior midgut2,3,4. Here, we revisited this event using fluorescence- and electron-microscopy methodologies. We show that trypanosomes penetrate the ectoperitrophic space in which the newly made peritrophic matrix is synthesized by the proventriculus. Our model describes how these proventriculus-colonizing parasites can either migrate to the ectoperitrophic space or become trapped within peritrophic matrix layers to form cyst-like bodies that are passively pushed along the gut as the matrix gets remodelled. Furthermore, early proventricular colonization seems to be promoted by factors in trypanosome-infected blood that cause higher salivary gland infections and potentially increase parasite transmission

Towards automatic protein co-expression quantification in immunohistochemical TMA slides

Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis of tissue biopsies is currently used for clinical screening of solid cancers to assess protein expression. The large amount of image data produced from these tissue samples requires specialized computational pathology methods to perform integrative analysis. Even though proteins are traditionally studied independently, the study of protein co-expression may offer new insights towards patients' clinical and therapeutic decisions. To explore protein co-expression, we constructed a modular image analysis pipeline to spatially align tissue microarray (TMA) image slides, evaluate alignment quality, define tumor regions, and ultimately quantify protein expression, before and after tumor segmentation. The pipeline was built with open-source tools that can manage gigapixel slides. To evaluate the consensus between pathologist and computer, we characterized a cohort of 142 gastric cancer (GC) cases regarding the extent of E-cadherin and CD44v6 expression. We performed IHC analysis in consecutive TMA slides and compared the automated quantification with the pathologists' manual assessment. Our results show that automated quantification within tumor regions improves agreement with the pathologists' classification. A co-expression map was created to identify the cores co-expressing both proteins. The proposed pipeline provides not only computational tools forwarding current pathology practices to explore co-expression, but also a framework for merging data and transferring information in learning-based approaches to pathology.TissUUmap

Análisis de la inversión extranjera directa de los países de américa latina ¿cuáles son sus determinantes? un estudio en datos de panel (1999-2010)

En esta investigación, se analiza un período de tiempo de doce años (1999-2010) con lo cual se busca obtener cuáles son los posibles determinantes que pueden afectar la inversión extranjera directa de un país. El análisis mediante datos de panel se realiza a 22 países de Latino América considerando variables macroeconómicas y variables que definen características especificas del país como la ideología política de los diferente gobiernos y la pertenencia del país al ALBA (Alianza Bolivariana para los pueblos de nuestra América). Esto ha permitido evaluar si las decisiones particulares por parte de los gobiernos a cargo influyen en forma positiva o negativa a la inversión extranjera directa. Los resultados obtenidos revelaron que diferenciarse entre ideología de izquierda y derecha no afecta a la IED, sin embargo, pertenecer a la izquierda extrema como los países miembros del ALBA, pueden afectarlos negativamente en sus flujos. La variable de riesgo y el índice de libertad económica fueron también consideradas en este estudio por la tendencia del inversionista en buscar mayor seguridad y confianza en sus decisiones de inversión. Ambas variables resultaron ser significativas para la IED, afectando en forma negativa y positiva, respectivamente

Análisis de la inversión extranjera directa de los países de américa latina ¿cuáles son sus determinantes? un estudio en datos de panel (1999-2010)

En esta investigación, se analiza un período de tiempo de doce años (1999-2010) con lo cual se busca obtener cuáles son los posibles determinantes que pueden afectar la inversión extranjera directa de un país. El análisis mediante datos de panel se realiza a 22 países de Latino América considerando variables macroeconómicas y variables que definen características especificas del país como la ideología política de los diferente gobiernos y la pertenencia del país al ALBA (Alianza Bolivariana para los pueblos de nuestra América). Esto ha permitido evaluar si las decisiones particulares por parte de los gobiernos a cargo influyen en forma positiva o negativa a la inversión extranjera directa. Los resultados obtenidos revelaron que diferenciarse entre ideología de izquierda y derecha no afecta a la IED, sin embargo, pertenecer a la izquierda extrema como los países miembros del ALBA, pueden afectarlos negativamente en sus flujos. La variable de riesgo y el índice de libertad económica fueron también consideradas en este estudio por la tendencia del inversionista en buscar mayor seguridad y confianza en sus decisiones de inversión. Ambas variables resultaron ser significativas para la IED, afectando en forma negativa y positiva, respectivamente

Novel Analysis of Immune Cells from Nasal Microbiopsy Demonstrates Reliable, Reproducible Data for Immune Populations, and Superior Cytokine Detection Compared to Nasal Wash

The morbidity and mortality related to respiratory tract diseases is enormous, with hundreds of millions of individuals afflicted and four million people dying each year. Understanding the immunological processes in the mucosa that govern outcome following pathogenic encounter could lead to novel therapies. There is a need to study responses at mucosal surfaces in humans for two reasons: (i) Immunological findings in mice, or other animals, often fail to translate to humans. (ii) Compartmentalization of the immune system dictates a need to study sites where pathogens reside. In this manuscript, we describe two novel non-invasive nasal mucosal microsampling techniques and their use for measuring immunological parameters: 1) using nasal curettes to collect cells from the inferior turbinate and; 2) absorptive matrices to collect nasal lining fluid. Both techniques were well tolerated and yielded reproducible and robust data. We demonstrated differences in immune populations and activation state in nasal mucosa compared to blood as well as compared to nasopharyngeal lumen in healthy adults. We also found superior cytokine detection with absorptive matrices compared to nasal wash. These techniques are promising new tools that will facilitate studies of the immunological signatures underlying susceptibility and resistance to respiratory infections