A Milestone-Driven Approach for Lab Assignments Evaluation in Information Security

In this paper we describe a methodology for designing and evaluating lab assignments based on the fulfilment of milestones. The approach relies on the integration of ICTs with an automatic, milestone-based evaluation. The final goal of this methodology is to diminish educators’ workload on lab assignments, so they can focus on the development of the assigned tasks, and to enhance students’ experience by providing direct and real-time feedback on their progress. This approach encourages autonomous learning on the students and optimizes the time invested by the educators during the lab assignments. In order to validate our proposal we have applied this methodology in several courses related to Information Security. The results of this experience show that the methodology improves students’ performance, while facilitating the work of the educator.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Spanish Dentists’ Awareness, Knowledge, and Practice Regarding COVID-19: A Multiple Regression Analysis

The authors thank the Spanish Society of Epidemiology and Oral Public Health (SESPO) for expert supervision of the questionnaire; the Spanish General Council of Dentists (GCD) and the Spanish societies of dental hygienists for their rapid dissemination of the survey to their members.Introduction: During the first months of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, Spain had the highest mortality rate and the second-highest infection rate in the world. Objective: To analyze the occupational situation of dentists, hygienists, and dental auxiliary staff during the peak of the pandemic, after the state of alarm was declared in Spain, and when the state of alarm was declared. In addition, a possible relationship between the geographical distribution of infected people and the availability of individual protection systems was investigated. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire was answered by 6470 dentists and dental staff via WhatsApp and social media. Results: A total of 1 in 4 dental professionals ceased working completely. Of those that kept working, 25.28% of dentists and 19.61% of hygienist-auxiliary were equipped with filtering face piece (FFP) 2 masks (P < .05), and 61.8% complied with the official protection recommendations set by the General Council of Dentists of Spain. Nearly 59.4% of respondents had symptoms, but only 1.5% of dentists were tested, with 14% of dentists in isolation at the time of response. Overall, it is suggested that 10% of dental professionals may have been in direct contact with the coronavirus. Conclusions: Direct contact of Spanish dental health professionals with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease 2 (SARS CoV-2) has been high during the most active phase of the pandemic. Dental professionals did not have personal protective equipment (PPE) necessary to care for patients, a situation that justified the reduction in scheduled dental care and only emergencies being treated. The Spanish geographical regions with the highest number of contagions had the least amount of individual protective resources (FFP2 and FFP3masks)

Beach Leveling Using a Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS): Problems and Solutions

The size and great dynamism of coastal systems require faster and more automated mapping methods like the use of a remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). This method allows for shorter intervals between surveys. The main problem for surveying using low-altitude digital photogrammetry in beach areas is their visual homogeneity. Obviously, the fewer the homologous points defined by the program, the lower the accuracy. Moreover, some factors influence the error performed in photogrammetric techniques, such as flight height, flight time, percentage of frame overlap (side and forward), and the number of ground control points (GCPs). A total of 72 different cases were conducted varying these factors, and the results were analyzed. Among the conclusions, it should be highlighted that the error for noon flights is almost double that for the early morning flights. Secondly, there is no appreciable difference regarding the side overlap. But, on the other side, RMSE increased to three times (from 0.05 to 0.15 m) when forward overlap decreased from 85% to 70%. Moreover, relative accuracy is 0.05% of the flying height which means a significant increase in error (66%) between flights performed at 60 and 100 m height). Furthermore, the median of the error for noon flights (0.12 m) is almost double that for the early morning flights (0.07 m) because of the higher percentage of grids with data for early flights. Therefore, beach levelings must never be performed at noon when carried out by RPAS. Eventually, a new parameter has been considered: the relationship between the number of GCPs and the surface to be monitored. A minimum value of 7 GCP/Ha should be taken into account when designing a beach leveling campaign using RPAS.Fundacion Campus Tecnologico de Algeciras; Coastal Engineering Research group (University of Cadiz

Produzione, mercato e consumi della cerasicoltura spagnola

La crisi di sovrapproduzione di alcune specie tradizionali sta favorendo la crescita del ciliegio, che mostra un costante incremento delle superfici, favorito dal rinnovamento varietale, dall’aumento dei consumi, dal miglioramento delle tecnologie di produzione e dalla precocità di maturazione. Tutti fattori che garantiscono alla Spagna elevata competitività nelle esportazioni verso i Paesi dell’Ue.Colaboración en el blog: Rivista di frutticoltura e di ortofloricoltura. Disponible: http://www.rivistafrutticoltura.it

Immunogenicity of variable regions of hepatitis C virus proteins: selection and modification of peptide epitopes to assess hepatitis C virus genotypes by ELISA

The immunogenicity of variable regions of hepatitis C virus (HCV) proteins was studied by ELISA by using 543 synthetic peptides from 120 variable regions and 90 sera from HCV-infected patients. Some regions from certain genotypes were less immunogenic, or even non-immunogenic, compared with their equivalents in other genotypes. However, the mean recognition of all peptides from genotypes 1a, 1b and 3 by sera infected with genotypes 1a, 1b and 3, respectively, showed no significant differences, suggesting a similar overall immunogenicity of variable regions from these genotypes. Proteins NS4a, NS4b and NS5a were found to be the most immunogenic. Recognition of individual peptides by the sera of infected patients showed that the humoral response against HCV is patient-dependent. The work shows that 15-mer peptides may encompass several B-cell epitopes. These epitopes may lie in slightly different positions in different genotypes. Thirty-one percent of the 543 peptides were recognized by some of the 35 healthy donors. This may be a reflection of the large number of antigens to which they had been exposed, but it may also reflect a strategy of HCV to respond to immune pressure. After selection and modification, a set of 40 peptides was used to assess genotypes 1a, 1b, 1, 2 and 3 in the sera of HCV-infected patients, with sensitivities of 34.1, 48.5, 68.8, 58.3 and 48.9% and specificities of 100, 99.1, 97.1, 99.5 and 99%, respectively. The overall sensitivity and specificity for the assessment of genotypes 1, 2 and 3 were 64 and 98%, respectively

Bycatch of the European purse-seine tuna fishery in the Atlantic Ocean for the period 2010-2016

This paper presents an update for the period 2010-2016 of the bycatch estimations for the European tuna purse seine fishery operating in the Atlantic Ocean. Bycatch data were collected by observers onboard. Observer coverage increased progressively from 15 trips in 2010, to 114 and 107 trips in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Bycatch data, as collected by the observers, were stratified by quarter and fishing mode (free school and floating object sets). The ratio of total to observed catches of the target species (skipjack, bigeye and yellowfin tunas) in each stratum was then used as raising factor. The average of the annual total bycatch estimated for the studied period was 9,515 t. Tunas (neritic tunas and small size tunas) represent the major part of the bycatch, followed by fin fish, sharks, billfishes, rays and turtles.En prens

Diagnosis of cardiac surgery-associated acute kidney injury: State of the art and perspectives

Producción CientíficaDiagnosis of cardiac surgery-associated acute kidney injury (CSA-AKI), a syndrome of sudden renal dysfunction occurring in the immediate post-operative period, is still sub-optimal. Standard CSA-AKI diagnosis is performed according to the international criteria for AKI diagnosis, afflicted with insufficient sensitivity, specificity, and prognostic capacity. In this article, we describe the limitations of current diagnostic procedures and of the so-called injury biomarkers and analyze new strategies under development for a conceptually enhanced diagnosis of CSA-AKI. Specifically, early pathophysiological diagnosis and patient stratification based on the underlying mechanisms of disease are presented as ongoing developments. This new approach should be underpinned by process-specific biomarkers including, but not limited to, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) to other functions of renal excretion causing GFR-independent hydro-electrolytic and acid-based disorders. In addition, biomarker-based strategies for the assessment of AKI evolution and prognosis are also discussed. Finally, special focus is devoted to the novel concept of pre-emptive diagnosis of acquired risk of AKI, a premorbid condition of renal frailty providing interesting prophylactic opportunities to prevent disease through diagnosis-guided personalized patient handling. Indeed, a new strategy of risk assessment complementing the traditional scores based on the computing of risk factors is advanced. The new strategy pinpoints the assessment of the status of the primary mechanisms of renal function regulation on which the impact of risk factors converges, namely renal hemodynamics and tubular competence, to generate a composite and personalized estimation of individual risk.Instituto de Salud Carlos III y Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) - (grant PI18/00996, PI21/01226), Unión Europea, Red de Investigación Renal (Enfermedad Renal) - (grant RICORS2040)Unión Europea–NextGenerationEU, Mecanismo para la Recuperación y la Resiliencia (MRR) - (grant RD21/0005/0004)Junta de Castilla y León (Consejería de Educación) y Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) - (grant IES160P20

Immunization with a tumor-associated CTL epitope plus a tumor-related or unrelated Th1 helper peptide elicits protective CTL immunity

Immunization with cytotoxic T cell epitope SPSYVYHQF (AH1), derived from MuLV gp70 envelope protein expressed by CT26 tumor cells, does not protect BALB/c mice against challenge with CT26 tumor cells. By contrast, immunization with AH1 plus T helper peptides OVA(323-337) or SWM(106-118) eliciting Th1 and Th0 profiles, protected 83% and 33% of mice, respectively. Interestingly, immunization with AH1 plus both helper peptides reverted the efficacy to 33%. We identified the endogenous T helper peptide p(320-333) from gp70 which elicits a Th1 profile and is naturally processed. As for OVA(323-337), immunization with p(320-333) alone did not protect against tumor challenge. However, p(320-333) plus AH1 protected 89% of mice at day 10 after vaccination. Only 20% of mice vaccinated with AH1 + OVA(323-337) or AH1 + p(320-333) were protected when challenged 80 days after immunization. Treatment with OVA(323-337) or with p(320-333) around established tumors delayed tumor growth. Our results show that tumor-related as well as tumor-unrelated but strong Th1 peptides may be useful for inducing CTL responses in tumor immunotherapy

The relative abundance of fecal bacterial species belonging to the Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes phyla is related to plasma levels of bile acids in young adults

The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-023-02016-8.Funding for open access publishing: Universidad de Granada/CBUA. The study was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness via Fondo de Investigacion Sanitaria del Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI13/01393) and PTA 12264-I, Retos de la Sociedad (DEP2016-79512-R), and European Regional Development Funds (ERDF), by the Spanish Ministry of Education (FPU16/05159, FPU16/02828, FPU17/01523 and FPU19/01609), the Fundacion Iberoamericana de Nutricion (FINUT), the University of Granada Plan Propio de Investigacion 2016-Excellence actions: Unit of Excellence on Exercise and Health (UCEES), AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation, and by the Junta de Andalucia, Consejeria de Economia, Conocimiento, Empresas y Universidad (ref. P18-RT-4455), the Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC, No. 201707060012 to XD), Fundacion Alfonso Martin Escudero and Maria Zambrano fellowship by the Ministerio de Universidades y la Union Europea -NextGenerationEU (RR_C_2021_04). We would like to thank the team of Data Integration Center of University Medicine Magdeburg for local data-analysis solutions; they are supported by MIRACUM and funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) within the "Medical Informatics Funding Scheme" (FKZ 01ZZ1801H). This study is part of a Ph.D. thesis conducted within the Biomedicine Doctoral Studies Program of the University of Granada, Spain. AL was supported by the funds from European Commission through the "European funds for regional development" (EFRE) Project ID: ZS/2018/11/95324.Background Gut bacteria play a crucial role in the metabolism of bile acids (BA). Whether an association exists between the fecal microbiota composition and circulating BA levels in humans is poorly understood. Here, we investigated the relationship between fecal microbiota diversity and composition with plasma levels of BA in young adults. Methods Fecal microbiota diversity/composition was analyzed with 16S rRNA sequencing in 80 young adults (74% women; 21.9 +/- 2.2 years old). Plasma levels of BA were measured using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. PERMANOVA and Spearman correlation analyses were used to investigate the association between fecal microbiota parameters and plasma levels of BA. Results Fecal microbiota beta (P = 0.025) and alpha diversity indexes of evenness (rho = 0.237, P = 0.033), Shannon (rho = 0.313, P = 0.004), and inverse Simpson (rho = 0.283, P = 0.010) were positively associated with plasma levels of the secondary BA glycolithocholic acid (GLCA). The relative abundance of genera belonging to the Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes phyla was positively correlated with plasma levels of GLCA (all rho = 0.225, P = 0.049). However, the relative abundance of species from Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes phyla were negatively correlated with plasma levels of primary and secondary BA (all rho = - 0.220, P = 0.045), except for the relative abundance of Bacteroides vulgatus, Alistipes onderdonkii, and Bacteroides xylanisolvens species (Bacteroidetes phylum) that were positively correlated with the plasma levels of GLCA. Conclusions The relative abundance of specific fecal bacteria species is associated with plasma levels of BA in young adults. However, further investigations are required to validate whether the composition of the gut microbiota can regulate the plasma concentrations of BA in humans.Universidad de Granada/CBUASpanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness via Fondo de Investigacion Sanitaria del Instituto de Salud Carlos III PI13/01393Retos de la Sociedad DEP2016-79512-REuropean CommissionSpanish Government FPU16/05159, FPU16/02828, FPU17/01523, FPU19/01609Fundacion Iberoamericana de Nutricion (FINUT)University of Granada Plan Propio de Investigacion 2016-Excellence actions: Unit of Excellence on Exercise and Health (UCEES)AstraZenecaJunta de Andalucia P18-RT-4455China Scholarship Council 201707060012Ministerio de Universidades y la Union Europea -Next Generation EU RR_C_2021_04MIRACUMFederal Ministry of Education & Research (BMBF) FKZ 01ZZ1801HUniversity of Granada, SpainEuropean Commission Joint Research Centre ZS/2018/11/9532

Towards airborne laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy: A signal recovery method for LIBS instruments subjected to vibrations

Sample or instrument vibrations can scatter laser impacts across the sample surface, which increases the uncertainty of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) measurements. The common sources of noise associated to mechanical vibration are described and a method for isolating LIBS measurements from artifacts introduced by such fluctuations is presented. The approach circumvents the use of mechanical stabilizers by leveraging simple components common in LIBS systems. A camera was used to capture close-up images of the sample for each laser shot and the laser spot position in the sample surface was measured using common image processing techniques. By associating spectra with spatial coordinates in the sample surface, it was possible to reduce the relative standard deviation of the Cu(I) 427.51 nm signal in a patterned Cu/Al sample from 122.0% to 53.31%, similar to that measured for a pure Cu sample in the same vibration conditions. The spatial resolution of the method was found to depend on the laser spot diameter, the illuminance at the sample, the camera sensitivity and trigger insertion delay, and the speed of the laser beam sweeping the sample surface. The spatial resolution obtained with the setup used was ±0.6 mm at 15 m, i.e., 40 μm per meter of separation between the instrument and the sample with a vibration speed limit of 12 cm·s−1.The authors would like to express their gratitude to Carlos Malagon ´of Astroshop (Málaga, Spain) for donating the telescope used in the stand-off LIBS instrument. This work has been partially supported by the Programa Estatal para la Incorporacion ´ Estable de Doctores (IEDI-2017-00828) and by the I Plan Propio de Investigacion ´ de la Universidad de Malaga ´ (Spain). Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Malaga/CBUA