Lipdubs as an Instrument to Overcome Invisibility in the Mass-Media. A study of four enthusiastic cases recorded in Quebec, USA, Catalonia and the Basque Country

This paper summarizes the principal conclusions of an investigation into lipdub as an instrument used by social movements in order to get more social influence. Since its creation in 2006, the phenomenon of lipdubs has increased\ud considerably. This research presents an analytical model for this type of video, providing general data, figures about the number of participants, characteristics of the song used and information about the profile of the audience. The work\ud highlights the main hypothetical features and components of a good lipdub. Four videos with high impact on Youtube are analyzed. This work claims that, at this time, a good lipdub can be a crucial tool for social movements in order to\ud overcome the invisibility with which the mass-media often punishes any expression which challenges mainstream tendencies

Physical properties of voltage gated pores

Experiments on single ionic channels have contributed to a large extent to our current view on the function of cell membrane. In these experiments the main observables are the physical quantities: ionic concentration, membrane electrostatic potential and ionic fluxes, all of them presenting large fluctuations. The classical theory of Goldman–Hodking–Katz assumes that an open channel can be well described by a physical pore where ions follow statistical physics. Nevertheless real molecular channels are active pores with open and close dynamical states. By skipping the molecular complexity of real channels, here we present the internal structure and calibration of two active pore models. These models present a minimum set of degrees of freedom, specifically ion positions and gate states, which follow Langevin equations constructed from a unique potential energy functional and by using standard rules of statistical physics. Numerical simulations of both models are implemented and the results show that they have dynamical properties very close to those observed in experiments of Na and K molecular channels. In particular a significant effect of the external ion concentration on gating dynamics is predicted, which is consistent with previous experimental observations. This approach can be extended to other channel types with more specific phenomenology.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Clinical and molecular characterization of DSD patients: Impact of Next Generation Sequencing in diagnosis

317 p.Disorders of sex development (DSD) encompass a high heterogeneous range of conditionsin which the optimal clinical management of the individuals comprise clinical description, biochemicaltesting and genetic analysis. With the arrival of next-generation sequencing (NGS) new genes andpathways have been implicated in the pathogenesis of the disease. However, only 50% of the 46,XY DSDpatients will receive a definitive diagnosis. The aim of this work is the clinical and molecularcharacterization of a DSD cohort. Patients and methods: Blood samples or DNA from a total of 125independent patients with a DSD referred from several Spanish centres and one Swiss hospital werestudied. Clinical characterization was done after examination of the data sheet provided by the clinicians.The molecular study was performed either by single-gene testing or NGS using a targeted gene panel of48 DSD-related genes. Parents were also analysed when possible. Genetic variants were analysed usingin silico prediction programmes and were classified according to its potential pathogenicity. Furtherfunctional studies of the genetic changes identified in three genes were also performed. Results: Overall,we made a genetic diagnosis in 4.4% of the individuals. In 46,XY DSD, the diagnostic rate increased upto 46.5% while in 46.XX DSD it was 29.2%. Novel changes classified as pathogenic or likely pathogenicwere mostly located in the NR5A1 and LHCGR genes. Functional impact of variants in NR5A1 andLHCGR showed a significant reduced transactivation activity while the variant of unknown significancein GATA4 showed similar activity compared to wild type. Conclusions: The heterogeneous phenotypesencompassed in this condition difficult the clinical diagnosis and highlight the need of a genetic study.The molecular analysis of DSD-related genes identified a causative genetic variant in the 40.2% of thepatients analysed in this cohort. Targeted gene sequencing panel is useful for the detection of singlenucleotidevariants, however further improvements are needed to detect copy number variations.Functional studies are a valuable tool to confirm the effect of a variant in the pathogenesis of the disease

Fixed-density boundary conditions in overdamped Langevin simulations of diffusion in channels

We consider the numerical integration of Langevin equations for particles in a channel, in the presence of boundary conditions fixing the concentration values at the ends. This kind of boundary condition appears for instance when considering the diffusion of ions in molecular channels, between the different concentrations at both sides of the cellular membrane. For this application the overdamped limit of Brownian motion (leading to a first order Langevin equation) is most convenient, but in previous works some difficulties associated with this limit were found for the implementation of the boundary conditions. We derive here an algorithm that, unlike previous attempts, does not require the simulation of particle reservoirs or the consideration of velocity variables or adjustable parameters. Simulations of Brownian particles in simple cases show that results agree perfectly with theory, both for the local concentration values and for the resulting particle flux in nonequilibrium situations. The algorithm is appropriate for the modeling of more complex ionic channels and, in general, for the treatment of analogous boundary conditions in other physical models using first order Langevin equations.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Clinical and molecular characterization of DSD patients: Impact of Next Generation Sequencing in diagnosis

317 p.Disorders of sex development (DSD) encompass a high heterogeneous range of conditionsin which the optimal clinical management of the individuals comprise clinical description, biochemicaltesting and genetic analysis. With the arrival of next-generation sequencing (NGS) new genes andpathways have been implicated in the pathogenesis of the disease. However, only 50% of the 46,XY DSDpatients will receive a definitive diagnosis. The aim of this work is the clinical and molecularcharacterization of a DSD cohort. Patients and methods: Blood samples or DNA from a total of 125independent patients with a DSD referred from several Spanish centres and one Swiss hospital werestudied. Clinical characterization was done after examination of the data sheet provided by the clinicians.The molecular study was performed either by single-gene testing or NGS using a targeted gene panel of48 DSD-related genes. Parents were also analysed when possible. Genetic variants were analysed usingin silico prediction programmes and were classified according to its potential pathogenicity. Furtherfunctional studies of the genetic changes identified in three genes were also performed. Results: Overall,we made a genetic diagnosis in 4.4% of the individuals. In 46,XY DSD, the diagnostic rate increased upto 46.5% while in 46.XX DSD it was 29.2%. Novel changes classified as pathogenic or likely pathogenicwere mostly located in the NR5A1 and LHCGR genes. Functional impact of variants in NR5A1 andLHCGR showed a significant reduced transactivation activity while the variant of unknown significancein GATA4 showed similar activity compared to wild type. Conclusions: The heterogeneous phenotypesencompassed in this condition difficult the clinical diagnosis and highlight the need of a genetic study.The molecular analysis of DSD-related genes identified a causative genetic variant in the 40.2% of thepatients analysed in this cohort. Targeted gene sequencing panel is useful for the detection of singlenucleotidevariants, however further improvements are needed to detect copy number variations.Functional studies are a valuable tool to confirm the effect of a variant in the pathogenesis of the disease

Periodic spiking by a pair of ionic channels

Neuronal cells present periodic trains of localized voltage spikes involving a large amount of different ionic channels. A relevant question is whether this is a cooperative effect or it could also be an intrinsic property of individual channels. Here we use a Langevin formulation for the stochastic dynamics of a pair of Na and K ionic channels. These two channels are simple gated pore models where a minimum set of degrees of freedom follow standard statistical physics. The whole system is totally autonomous without any external energy input, except for the chemical energy of the different ionic concentrations across the membrane. As a result it is shown that a unique pair of different ionic channels can sustain membrane potential periodic spikes. The spikes are due to the interaction between the membrane potential, the ionic flows and the dynamics of the internal parts (gates) of each channel structures. The spike involves a series of dynamical steps being the more relevant one the leak of Na ions. Missing spike events are caused by the altered functioning of specific model parts. The time dependent spike structure is comparable with experimental data.This work was supported by the Ministerio de Economia y Competividad (Spain) and FEDER (European Union), under projects FIS2015-66503-C01-P2/P3 and by the Generalitat de Catalunya Projects 2009SGR14 and 2014SGR878Peer ReviewedPreprin

Report about the media literacy situation in the basque school community

El presente artículo recoge los principales resultados de una investigación cuantitativa y cualitativa llevada a cabo durante el período 2007-10 por el equipo de investigación HGH (Medios de Difusión, Sociedad y Educación) de la Universidad del País Vasco. El principal objetivo de la misma ha sido analizar el estado de la alfabetización audiovisual (Media Literacy) en el entorno de la comunidad escolar del País Vasco. Una de las principales novedades del presente trabajo radica en que se ha analizado el conjunto de la comunidad escolar en un momento y entorno concreto; es decir, teniendo en cuenta la opinión tanto de alumnado, como de profesorado y padres. Los resultados de la investigación cuantitativa se han extraído de una encuesta realizada a 598 jóvenes vascos de entre 14 y 18 años escolarizados tanto en institutos de Secundaria y Bachillerato como en centros de Formación Profesional. La investigación cualitativa se ha fundamentado en la información recogida a través de diez grupos de discusión y seis entrevistas en profundidad. En los grupos han participado jóvenes de la misma edad (entre 14 y 18 años) por una parte y padres y madres de entre 40 y 55 años por otro. En las entrevistas en profundidad, se ha testado la opinión de ocho profesores que imparten docencia en materias relacionadas con la educación en comunicación (educomunicación). A tenor de los resultados, el sistema educativo debería introducir la educomunicación entre sus prioridades.____________________________________and 2010 by the HGH «Hedabideak, Gizartea eta Hezkuntza» (Media, Society and Education) research team at the University of the Basque Country. The main aim of the research was to examine the situation of Media Literacy in the Basque Country’s school community. One of the newest aspects of this research was the study of the school community as a whole, at a specific moment and in a specific field; in other words, the students, teachers and parents of the same community. The results of the quantitative study have been taken from a survey done among 598 young people between 14 and 18 years old enrolled in Secondary or Further Education, or in Vocational Training courses. The qualitative study took into account the information extracted from ten focus groups and six in-depth interviews. Young people between the ages of 14 and 18, parents between 40 and 55, and eight experts of different ages took part in the discussions. Through the in-depth interviews the research team observed the opinions of eight educators who teach Education in Media. According to the results, the education system should include media education among its priorities

Dignidad y precio justo: Las economías morales de la agricultura y la ganadería en la era de la agro-industria

The hegemonic agro-food system currently dominant in Spain and other European countries challenges farmers’ livelihoods. This paper addresses farmers’ (un)sustainabilities from a moral economy perspective, focusing on discussions about just prices. We argue that it is important to consider the historical perspective of food systems from a political economy point of view and to examine tensions and clashes between values and norms through the notion of moral economy. We analyse these perspectives through various case studies in different Spanish regions: farmers in Galicia, viticulturists in El Penedès and “alternative” provisioning systems in Catalonia. Furthermore, we combine the moral economy perspective with feminist and eco-feminist contributions that help us to understand one of farmers’ most common demands: just prices that guarantee livelihoods and dignity. This paper also deals with the ambivalent role of the state as a price regulator and with farmers’ aspirations of autonomy from the market and the state. The global health crisis caused by COVID-19 during the first half of 2020 stresses the need to continue exploring the (un)sustainabilities of our hegemonic agro-food system and the potentialities and limitations of counter-hegemonic food provisioning systems that try to build alternative food paths.El sistema agroalimentario hegemónico actualmente dominante en España y otros países europeos desafía los medios de vida de los agricultores. Este artículo aborda las (in)sostenibilidades de los agricultores y ganaderos desde una perspectiva de economía moral, centrándose en discusiones sobre precios justos. Argumentamos que es importante considerar la perspectiva histórica de los sistemas alimentarios desde el punto de vista de la economía política y examinar las tensiones y choques entre valores y normas a través de la noción de economía moral. Analizamos estas perspectivas a través de diversos casos de estudio en diferentes regiones españolas: agricultores y ganaderos en Galicia, viticultores en El Penedès y sistemas de aprovisionamiento “alternativos” en Cataluña. Además, combinamos la perspectiva de la economía moral con contribuciones feministas y ecofeministas que nos ayudan a comprender una de las demandas más comunes de los agricultores y ganaderos: precios justos que garanticen los medios de vida y la dignidad. Este documento también se ocupa del papel ambivalente del estado como regulador de precios y de las aspiraciones de los agricultores y ganaderos a la autonomía del mercado y el estado