Importancia de las Cuidadoras en la Constitución Psíquica de Niños Abrigados

Attachment is a means of showing affection and allows for a healthier psychological development. This research aimed to understand the importance of caring and welcoming by carers in attachment building, targeting the reduction of institutionalized children’s suffering. A semi structured interview was conducted with nine carers of an Association located in a country town in São Paulo. Results showed that carers develop attachment to the children and help in lowering the impacts of institutionalization, as they perform maternal roles. On the other hand, carers were displeased with the institution due to the reduced number of employees, especially the rota system, as a factor that interferes with children’s care. Besides, they showed difficulties in understanding the limits of attachment with the children, for the relationship to be healthy for both parts. It is hoped that this research’s results provide knowledge to carers, concerning the importance of caring and the role of attachment in psychological development during institutionalization. Keywords: psychological development; carers; attachment.La vinculación es una manera de demonstrar afectividad y permite un desarrollo psíquico saludable. Esta pesquisa tuvo el objetivo de comprender la importancia del cuidado y acogida de las cuidadoras en la construcción de la vinculación, para reducir el sufrimiento de niños abrigados. Fue efectuada una entrevista semiestructurada con nueve cuidadoras de una Asociación localizada en una ciudad del interior de São Paulo. Resultados muestrearan que las cuidadoras desarrollan vinculaciones afectivas con los niños y contribuyen en la diminución de los impactos de la institucionalización, porque realizan el papel de figura maternal. En contrapartida, las cuidadoras retrataran una insatisfacción con la institución, relacionada a el número reducido de empleados, especialmente la rotatividad como un factor prejudicial a los cuidados con los niños. También presentaran dificultad em comprender el límite de envolvimiento afectivo con los niños, para que sea una relación saludable para ambos. Se espera que los resultados de esta pesquisa traigan conocimiento a las cuidadoras, referente a la importancia del proceso de cuidar y el papel de la vinculación en el desarrollo psíquico en el proceso de abrigamento. Descriptores: desarrollo psíquico; cuidadoras; vinculación.O vínculo é uma das formas de se demonstrar a afetividade e permite um desenvolvimento psíquico mais saudável. Esta pesquisa teve o objetivo compreender a importância do cuidado e acolhimento realizado por parte das cuidadoras na construção do vínculo, visando reduzir o sofrimento de crianças institucionalizadas. Foi realizada uma entrevista semiestruturada com nove cuidadoras de uma Associação localizada numa cidade do interior do estado de São Paulo. Os resultados mostraram que as cuidadoras desenvolvem vínculo afetivo com as crianças, e contribuem na amenização dos impactos da institucionalização, uma vez que realizam o papel de figura materna. Em contrapartida, as cuidadoras demonstraram um descontentamento com a instituição referente ao número reduzido de funcionárias, destacando a alta rotatividade como um fator que prejudica o cuidado das crianças. Além disso, apresentaram dificuldades em compreender o limite de envolvimento afetivo com as crianças, para que seja uma relação saudável para ambas as partes. Espera-se que os resultados desta pesquisa forneçam conhecimento às cuidadoras, referente à importância no processo de cuidar, e o papel do vínculo no desenvolvimento psíquico ao longo do processo de abrigamento. Palavras-chave: desenvolvimento psíquico; cuidadoras; vínculo

Efficient Methods for Natural Language Processing: A Survey

Recent work in natural language processing (NLP) has yielded appealing results from scaling model parameters and training data; however, using only scale to improve performance means that resource consumption also grows. Such resources include data, time, storage, or energy, all of which are naturally limited and unevenly distributed. This motivates research into efficient methods that require fewer resources to achieve similar results. This survey synthesizes and relates current methods and findings in efficient NLP. We aim to provide both guidance for conducting NLP under limited resources, and point towards promising research directions for developing more efficient methods.Comment: Accepted at TACL, pre publication versio

Melanoma Spheroids Grown Under Neural Crest Cell Conditions Are Highly Plastic Migratory/Invasive Tumor Cells Endowed with Immunomodulator Function

International audienceBACKGROUND: The aggressiveness of melanoma tumors is likely to rely on their well-recognized heterogeneity and plasticity. Melanoma comprises multi-subpopulations of cancer cells some of which may possess stem cell-like properties. Although useful, the sphere-formation assay to identify stem cell-like or tumor initiating cell subpopulations in melanoma has been challenged, and it is unclear if this model can predict a functional phenotype associated with aggressive tumor cells. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We analyzed the molecular and functional phenotypes of melanoma spheroids formed in neural crest cell medium. Whether from metastatic or advanced primary tumors, spheroid cells expressed melanoma-associated markers. They displayed higher capacity to differentiate along mesenchymal lineages and enhanced expression of SOX2, NANOG, KLF4, and/or OCT4 transcription factors, but not enhanced self-renewal or tumorigenicity when compared to their adherent counterparts. Gene expression profiling attributed a neural crest cell signature to these spheroids and indicated that a migratory/invasive and immune-function modulating program could be associated with these cells. In vitro assays confirmed that spheroids display enhanced migratory/invasive capacities. In immune activation assays, spheroid cells elicited a poorer allogenic response from immune cells and inhibited mitogen-dependent T cells activation and proliferation more efficiently than their adherent counterparts. Our findings reveal a novel immune-modulator function of melanoma spheroids and suggest specific roles for spheroids in invasion and in evasion of antitumor immunity. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: The association of a more plastic, invasive and evasive, thus a more aggressive tumor phenotype with melanoma spheroids reveals a previously unrecognized aspect of tumor cells expanded as spheroid cultures. While of limited efficiency for melanoma initiating cell identification, our melanoma spheroid model predicted aggressive phenotype and suggested that aggressiveness and heterogeneity of melanoma tumors can be supported by subpopulations other than cancer stem cells. Therefore, it could be constructive to investigate melanoma aggressiveness, relevant to patients and clinical transferability

Multidisciplinary Scientific Cruises for Environmental Characterization in the Santos Basin – Methods and Sampling Design

The Santos Basin (SB) is the main petroliferous basin in the Brazilian continental margin and one of the most studied marine areas in Brazil. However, historical data suggest that new efforts should be carried out to acquire quantitative biological data, especially in the deep sea, to establish the baseline of essential ocean variables in different ecosystems for future monitoring programs. The Brazilian energy company Petrobras planned and executed 24 oceanographic cruises over a period of 2 years to assess the benthic (SANSED cruise) and pelagic (SANAGU cruise) systems of the SB (356 days at sea in 2019 and 2021/2022). These efforts were part of the Santos Project, which comprised a comprehensive environmental study aimed at investigating benthic and pelagic variables to characterize ecology, biogeochemistry, thermohaline properties of water masses, and ocean circulation patterns, geomorphology, and sedimentology, as well as organic and inorganic chemistry. Here we present the detailed sampling designs and the field methods employed on board, during the SB scientific cruises. All sampling protocols were based on standardized approaches. For the benthos analyses, triplicate sediment samples were performed using a GOMEX-type box corer (0.25 m²) or a large modified Van Veen grab (0.75 m²) at 100 stations ranging from 25 to 2400 m depth. At each station, 25 geochemical and physico-chemical parameters were analyzed in addition to micro-, meio-, and macrofauna and living foraminifera samples. For the pelagic system, 60 stations were selected to investigate the plankton community, ranging in size from pico- to macroplankton, through vertical, horizontal, and oblique net hauls (20, 200, and 500 μm mesh size), as well as 25 biogeochemical parameters collected with an aid of a CTD-rosette sampler. Part of this scientific information also serves the Regional Environmental Characterization Project (PCR-BS) in support of Petrobras’ Santos Basin drilling licensing process led by the Brazilian Environmental Agency – IBAMA. This project contributes to the sustainable development of the SB, in line with the guidelines of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

Directed Evaluation of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli Autotransporter Proteins as Putative Vaccine Candidates

Diarrheal diseases are responsible for more than 1.5 million deaths annually in developing countries. Enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) are among the most common bacterial causes of diarrhea, accounting for an estimated 300,000–500,000 deaths each year, mostly in young children. There unfortunately is not yet a vaccine that can offer sustained, broad-based protection against ETEC. While most vaccine development effort has focused on plasmid-encoded finger-like ETEC adhesin structures known as colonization factors, additional effort is needed to identify conserved target antigens. Epidemiologic studies suggest that immune responses to uncharacterized, chromosomally encoded antigens could contribute to protection resulting from repeated infections. Earlier studies of immune responses to ETEC infection had identified a class of surface-expressed molecules known as autotransporters (AT). Therefore, available ETEC genome sequences were examined to identify conserved ETEC autotransporters not shared by the commensal E. coli HS strain, followed by studies of the immune response to these antigens, and tests of their utility as vaccine components. Two chromosomally encoded ATs, identified in ETEC, but not in HS, were found to be immunogenic and protective in an animal model, suggesting that conserved AT molecules contribute to protective immune responses that follow natural ETEC infection and offering new potential targets for vaccines

Rapid responses of root traits and productivity to phosphorus and cation additions in a tropical lowland forest in Amazonia

• Soil nutrient availability can strongly affect root traits. In tropical forests, phosphorus (P) is often considered the main limiting nutrient for plants. However, support for the P paradigm is limited, and N and cations might also control tropical forests functioning. • We used a large‐scale experiment to determine how the factorial addition of nitrogen (N), P and cations affected root productivity and traits related to nutrient acquisition strategies (morphological traits, phosphatase activity, arbuscular mycorrhizal colonisation and nutrient contents) in a primary rainforest growing on low‐fertility soils in Central Amazonia after one year of fertilisation. • Multiple root traits and productivity were affected. Phosphorus additions increased annual root productivity and root diameter, but decreased root phosphatase activity. Cation additions increased root productivity at certain times of year, also increasing root diameter and mycorrhizal colonisation. P and cation additions increased their element concentrations in root tissues. No responses were detected with N addition. • Here we show that rock‐derived nutrients determine root functioning in low‐fertility Amazonian soils, demonstrating not only the hypothesised importance of P, but also highlighting the role of cations. The changes in fine root traits and productivity indicate that even slow‐growing tropical rainforests can respond rapidly to changes in resource availability

A year of genomic surveillance reveals how the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic unfolded in Africa

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RA-MAP, molecular immunological landscapes in early rheumatoid arthritis and healthy vaccine recipients

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disorder with poorly defined aetiology characterised by synovial inflammation with variable disease severity and drug responsiveness. To investigate the peripheral blood immune cell landscape of early, drug naive RA, we performed comprehensive clinical and molecular profiling of 267 RA patients and 52 healthy vaccine recipients for up to 18 months to establish a high quality sample biobank including plasma, serum, peripheral blood cells, urine, genomic DNA, RNA from whole blood, lymphocyte and monocyte subsets. We have performed extensive multi-omic immune phenotyping, including genomic, metabolomic, proteomic, transcriptomic and autoantibody profiling. We anticipate that these detailed clinical and molecular data will serve as a fundamental resource offering insights into immune-mediated disease pathogenesis, progression and therapeutic response, ultimately contributing to the development and application of targeted therapies for RA.</p