La imagen y la narrativa como herramientas para el abordaje psicosocial en escenarios de violencia. Municipios de Granada, Yopal y Toronto, Canadá

Este trabajo tiene como intención el análisis reflexivo y detallado de los casos propuestos desde los sustentos teóricos y el enfoque narrativo como herramienta psicosocial, dando a conocer el sentir de las víctimas a través del relato donde cada protagonista cuenta su experiencia de vida y el proceso que le ha tocado vivir como víctima del conflicto armado en Colombia. Por lo cual se eligió el relato de Camilo, como eje de análisis para el trabajo colaborativo. “Un joven afrocolombiano sale en condición de desplazamiento, por constante presión, estigmatización y amenazas de paramilitares y de milicianos de las FARC”. (Tomado de Voces: relatos de violencia y esperanza, Banco Mundial, 2009. (p.3), además, las secuelas como la pérdida de identidad, desarraigo cultural, vulnerabilidad social y exclusión. En cuanto al caso de Peñas Coloradas, parte de la dimensión psicosocial y socio- histórica, identificando emociones y sentimientos de las víctimas y las dinámicas de confrontación de grupos armados legales e ilegales, siendo obligados a desplazarse en condición de pobreza, abandono estatal, vulneración de derechos y repercusiones psicológicas y físicas; estableciendo estrategias psicosociales para el fortalecimiento de recursos de afrontamiento, restauración del tejido social y capacidad de resiliencia. De tal manera se expone los resultados de una actividad práctica, desde la psicología social comunitaria con el propósito de visibilizar y reflexionar con los espacios cotidianos por parte de cada uno de los estudiantes, en el presente cada estudiante utilizó un instrumento Foto intervención o también conocido como “Foto Voz” para el diagnóstico de problemas psicosociales, en foco a la violencia y sus diferentes escenarios como son: Yopal -Casanare, Granada - Meta y un país del extranjero Barrio Kensington - Canadá.The intention of this work is the thoughtful and detailed analysis of the cases proposed from the theoretical foundations and the narrative approach as a psychosocial tool, revealing the feelings of the victims through the story where each protagonist tells their life experience and the process that he has had to live as a victim of the armed conflict in Colombia. Camilo's story was chosen as the axis of analysis for collaborative work. "A young Afro- Colombian leaves in a condition of displacement, due to constant pressure, stigmatization and threats from paramilitaries and FARC militiamen." (Taken from Voices: stories of violence and hope, World Bank, 2009. (p.3), added to consequences such as loss of identity, cultural uprooting, social vulnerability and exclusion. The case of Peñas Coloradas, part of the psychosocial and socio-historical dimension, identifying emotions and feelings of the victims and the dynamics of confrontation of legal and illegal armed groups, being forced to move in a condition of poverty, state abandonment, violation of rights and psychological and physical repercussions; establishing psychosocial strategies for the strengthening of coping resources, restoration of the social fabric and resilience capacity. In such a way, the results of a practical activity are exposed, from the community social psychology with the purpose of making visible and reflecting with the daily spaces by each of the students, in the present each student used an instrument Photo intervention or also known as "Photo Voice" for the diagnosis of psychosocial problems, focusing on violence and its different scenarios such as: Yopal -Casanare, Granada - Meta and a foreign country Kensington neighborhood - Canada

Tuberculosis en el personal de enfermería del Hospital Universitario Erasmo Meoz. Serie de casos

RESUMENINTRODUCCIÓN: Se presentan 4 casos de enfermeras con tuberculosis en el Hospital Universitario Erasmo Meoz de Cúcuta durante el periodo 2001-2010. En Colombia no hay estudios que reporten el riesgo de ser trabajadores de la salud y el riesgo de contagio por la enfermedad.OBJETIVO: Identificar la presencia de casos de tuberculosis en el personal de enfermería del hospital Universitario Erasmo Meoz.METODOLOGIA: Se realizó revisión de historias clínicas con datos suministrados por el personal de salud ocupacional del HUEM, además de una encuesta y consentimiento informado para el suministro de información adicional, imágenes diagnósticas y pruebas de laboratorio.CONCLUSIONES: Se evidencia la presencia de tuberculosis en el personal de enfermería del Hospital Universitario Erasmo Meoz, de mayor predominio en las auxiliares de enfermería y que laboran en el servicio de urgencias y medicina interna. Hay presencia de tuberculosis pulmonar, como extrapulmonar y como característica principal la tos con expectoración y el síndrome febril prolongado en la extrapulmonar

NF-κB, stem cells and breast cancer: the links get stronger

Self-renewing breast cancer stem cells are key actors in perpetuating tumour existence and in treatment resistance and relapse. The molecular pathways required for their maintenance are starting to be elucidated. Among them is the transcription factor NF-κB, which is known to play critical roles in cell survival, inflammation and immunity. Recent studies indicate that mammary epithelial NF-κB regulates the self-renewal of breast cancer stem cells in a model of Her2-dependent tumourigenesis. We will describe here the NF-κB-activating pathways that are involved in this process and in which progenitor cells this transcription factor is actually activated

Phenotyping male infertility in the mouse: how to get the most out of a ‘non-performer’

BACKGROUND: Functional male gametes are produced through complex processes that take place within the testis, epididymis and female reproductive tract. A breakdown at any of these phases can result in male infertility. The production of mutant mouse models often yields an unexpected male infertility phenotype. It is with this in mind that the current review has been written. The review aims to act as a guide to the 'non-reproductive biologist' to facilitate a systematic analysis of sterile or subfertile mice and to assist in extracting the maximum amount of information from each model. METHODS: This is a review of the original literature on defects in the processes that take a mouse spermatogonial stem cell through to a fully functional spermatozoon, which result in male infertility. Based on literature searches and personal experience, we have outlined a step-by-step strategy for the analysis of an infertile male mouse line. RESULTS: A wide range of methods can be used to define the phenotype of an infertile male mouse. These methods range from histological methods such as electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry, to hormone analyses and methods to assess sperm maturation status and functional competence. CONCLUSION: With the increased rate of genetically modified mouse production, the generation of mouse models with unexpected male infertility is increasing. This manuscript will help to ensure that the maximum amount of information is obtained from each mouse model and, by extension, will facilitate the knowledge of both normal fertility processes and the causes of human infertility

Improved development of mouse and human embryos using a tilting embryo culture system

Mammalian embryos experience not only hormonal but also mechanical stimuli, such as shear stress, compression and friction force in the Fallopian tube before nidation. In order to apply mechanical stimuli to embryos in a conventional IVF culture system, the tilting embryo culture system (TECS) was developed. The observed embryo images from the TECS suggest that the velocities and shear stresses of TECS embryos are similar to those experienced in the oviduct. Use of TECS enhanced the development rate to the blastocyst stage and significantly increased the cell number of mouse blastocysts (P < 0.05). Although not statistically significant, human thawed embryos showed slight improvement in development to the blastocyst stage following culture in TECS compared with static controls. Rates of blastocyst formation following culture in TECS were significantly improved in low-quality embryos and those embryos cultured under suboptimal conditions (P < 0.05). The TECS is proposed as a promising approach to improve embryo development and blastocyst formation by exposing embryos to mechanical stimuli similar to those in the Fallopian tube

The Genetic Links to anxiety and depression (GLAD) study: Online recruitment into the largest recontactable study of depression and anxiety

Background: Anxiety and depression are common, debilitating and costly. These disorders are influenced by multiple risk factors, from genes to psychological vulnerabilities and environmental stressors, but research is hampered by a lack of sufficiently large comprehensive studies. We are recruiting 40,000 individuals with lifetime depression or anxiety and broad assessment of risks to facilitate future research. Methods: The Genetic Links to Anxiety and Depression (GLAD) Study (www.gladstudy.org.uk) recruits individuals with depression or anxiety into the NIHR Mental Health BioResource. Participants invited to join the study (via media campaigns) provide demographic, environmental and genetic data, and consent for medical record linkage and recontact. Results: Online recruitment was effective; 42,531 participants consented and 27,776 completed the questionnaire by end of July 2019. Participants’ questionnaire data identified very high rates of recurrent depression, severe anxiety, and comorbidity. Participants reported high rates of treatment receipt. The age profile of the sample is biased toward young adults, with higher recruitment of females and the more educated, especially at younger ages. Discussion: This paper describes the study methodology and descriptive data for GLAD, which represents a large, recontactable resource that will enable future research into risks, outcomes, and treatment for anxiety and depression

Dicer1 Depletion in Male Germ Cells Leads to Infertility Due to Cumulative Meiotic and Spermiogenic Defects

Background: Spermatogenesis is a complex biological process that requires a highly specialized control of gene expression. In the past decade, small non-coding RNAs have emerged as critical regulators of gene expression both at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level. DICER1, an RNAse III endonuclease, is essential for the biogenesis of several classes of small RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs) and endogenous small interfering RNAs (endo-siRNAs), but is also critical for the degradation of toxic transposable elements. In this study, we investigated to which extent DICER1 is required for germ cell development and the progress of spermatogenesis in mice.Principal Findings: We show that the selective ablation of Dicer1 at the early onset of male germ cell development leads to infertility, due to multiple cumulative defects at the meiotic and post-meiotic stages culminating with the absence of functional spermatozoa. Alterations were observed in the first spermatogenic wave and include delayed progression of spermatocytes to prophase I and increased apoptosis, resulting in a reduced number of round spermatids. The transition from round to mature spermatozoa was also severely affected, since the few spermatozoa formed in mutant animals were immobile and misshapen, exhibiting morphological defects of the head and flagellum. We also found evidence that the expression of transposable elements of the SINE family is up-regulated in Dicer1-depleted spermatocytes.Conclusions/Significance: Our findings indicate that DICER1 is dispensable for spermatogonial stem cell renewal and mitotic proliferation, but is required for germ cell differentiation through the meiotic and haploid phases of spermatogenesis

Choline Dehydrogenase Polymorphism rs12676 Is a Functional Variation and Is Associated with Changes in Human Sperm Cell Function

Approximately 15% of couples are affected by infertility and up to half of these cases arise from male factor infertility. Unidentified genetic aberrations such as chromosomal deletions, translocations and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) may be the underlying cause of many cases of idiopathic male infertility. Deletion of the choline dehydrogenase (Chdh) gene in mice results in decreased male fertility due to diminished sperm motility; sperm from Chdh−/− males have decreased ATP concentrations likely stemming from abnormal sperm mitochondrial morphology and function in these cells. Several SNPs have been identified in the human CHDH gene that may result in altered CHDH enzymatic activity. rs12676 (G233T), a non-synonymous SNP located in the CHDH coding region, is associated with increased susceptibility to dietary choline deficiency and risk of breast cancer. We now report evidence that this SNP is also associated with altered sperm motility patterns and dysmorphic mitochondrial structure in sperm. Sperm produced by men who are GT or TT for rs12676 have 40% and 73% lower ATP concentrations, respectively, in their sperm. rs12676 is associated with decreased CHDH protein in sperm and hepatocytes. A second SNP located in the coding region of IL17BR, rs1025689, is linked to altered sperm motility characteristics and changes in choline metabolite concentrations in sperm

Cognitive rehabilitation, self-management, psychotherapeutic and caregiver support interventions in progressive neurodegenerative conditions: a scoping review

BACKGROUND: Despite their potentially significant impact, cognitive disability may be overlooked in a number of progressive neurodegenerative conditions, as other difficulties dominate the clinical picture. OBJECTIVE: We examined the extent, nature and range of the research evidence relating to cognitive rehabilitation, self-management, psychotherapeutic and caregiver support interventions in Parkinsonian disorders, multiple sclerosis (MS), frontotemporal dementias (FTD), motor neuron disease and Huntington’s disease. METHODS: Scoping review based on searches of MEDLINE and CINAHL up to 15 March 2016. RESULTS: We included 140 eligible papers. Over half of the studies, and almost all the randomised controlled trials, related to MS, while a number of single case studies described interventions for people with FTD. CR interventions addressed functional ability, communication and interaction, behaviour or memory. The majority of psychotherapy interventions involved cognitive behavioural therapy for depression or anxiety. Self-management interventions were mainly available for people with MS. There were few reports of interventions specific to caregivers. Numerous methodological challenges were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The limited range of studies for all conditions except MS suggests a need firstly to synthesise systematically the available evidence across conditions and secondly to develop well-designed studies to provide evidence about the effectiveness of CR and other psychological interventions