PTEN: A master regulator of neuronal structure, function, and plasticity.

PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog on chromosome ten) is a dual protein/lipid phosphatase that dephosphorylates PIP3, thereby inhibiting the AKT/mTOR pathway. This inhibition ultimately decreases protein translation, cell proliferation and cell growth. In the central nervous system, inhibition of PTEN leads to increased stem cell proliferation, somatic, dendritic and axonal growth, accelerated spine maturation, diminished synaptic plasticity, and altered intrinsic excitability. In agreement with these findings, patients carrying single-copy inactivating mutations of PTEN suffer from autism, macrocephaly, mental retardation, and epilepsy.(1) (-) (9) Understanding the mechanisms through which PTEN modulates the structure, function, and plasticity of cortical networks is a major focus of study. Preventing and reversing the changes induced by loss of Pten in model animals will pave the way for treatments in humans

Twitter for teaching: Can social media be used to enhance the process of learning?

Can social media be used to enhance the process of learning by students in higher education? Social media have become widely adopted by students in their personal lives. However, the application of social media to teaching and learning remains to be fully explored. In this study, the use of the social media tool Twitter for teaching was considered. Undergraduate students in Business and Management (n = 252) were encouraged to use Twitter for communicating with their tutor and each other during a 12-week course. Their involvement was evaluated using a survey considering amount of Twitter usage and students' attitudes and experiences. The data were analysed using factor analyses, which revealed a single usage construct and three attitudinal factors. Three findings emerged. Firstly, a positive correlation was found between amount of Twitter usage and student engagement in university-associated activities including organising their social lives and sharing information. Secondly, course-related tweeting was not related to interpersonal relationships between students and their tutor. Thirdly, Twitter usage did not impact class attendance. The results are salient for educational practitioners wishing to introduce social media into their teaching

La enzima quinasa dependiente de 5´-adenosil monofosfato (ampk): perspectivas terapéuticas

En este trabajo nos centraremos en el estudio de la enzima quinasa dependiente de 5´-adenosil monofosfato (AMPK). La AMPK actúa como un sensor de energía y nutrientes y regula el balance energético. Se activa con el aumento de la relación AMP/ATP dentro de la célula y está implicada en numerosos procesos metabólicos, destacando la captación de glucosa y de ácidos grasos por la célula. La AMPK está formada por tres subunidades: α, β y γ, cada una de ellas con varias isoformas. Cabe destacar que la subunidad β está en contacto con depósitos de glucógeno, permitiéndole interactuar rápidamente e intervenir en el metabolismo energético. La AMPK se activa por diferentes mecanismos y se encarga de fosforilar a una serie de enzimas que están implicadas en el anabolismo, lo cual evita el consumo de ATP y también en el catabolismo, produciendo un aumento de la generación de ATP, consiguiendo de este modo mantener la homeostasis energética. Esta enzima está presente en la mayoría de los órganos, principalmente en hígado, músculo esquelético, corazón, hipotálamo y células adiposas. Puesto que la AMPK participa en la regulación de la glucólisis, la captación de glucosa, la oxidación y la síntesis de ácidos grasos, la síntesis de colesterol y en la gluconeogénesis, es considerada como una enzima diana en el posible tratamiento de algunas enfermedades como son la Diabetes Mellitus tipo 2. Para llegar a conocer todos estos aspectos de la enzima haremos un estudio general de su estructura, de sus activadores y de la función que lleva a cabo en los diversos tejidosUniversidad de Sevilla. Grado en Farmaci

Genericity in Topological Dynamics

We study genericity of dynamical properties in the space of homeomorphisms of the Cantor set and in the space of subshifts of a suitably large shift space. These rather different settings are related by a Glasner-King type correspondence: genericity in one is equivalent to genericity in the other. By applying symbolic techniques in the shift-space model we derive new results about genericity of dynamical properties for transitive and totally transitive homeomorphisms of the Cantor set. We show that the isomorphism class of the universal odometer is generic in the space of transitive systems. On the other hand, the space of totally transitive systems displays much more varied dynamics. In particular, we show that in this space the isomorphism class of every Cantor system without periodic points is dense, and the following properties are generic: minimality, zero entropy, disjointness from a fixed totally transitive system, weak mixing, strong mixing, and minimal self joinings. The last two stand in striking contrast to the situation in the measure-preserving category. We also prove a correspondence between genericity of dynamical properties in the measure-preserving category and genericity of systems supporting an invariant measure with the same property.Comment: 48 pages, to appear in Ergodic Theory Dynamical Systems. v2: revised exposition, added proof that the universal odometer is generic among transitive Cantor homeomorphism

Introducción: Arte, Publicidad y Vida Cotidiana en los Espacios del Arte. Publicidad: el arte tapado

Introduction: Art, Advertising and Daily Life in the Artistic SpaceAdvertising: the Covered ArtIntroducción: Arte, Publicidad y Vida Cotidiana en los Espacios del Arte. Publicidad: el arte tapad