Del Pensamiento Alineado al Pensamiento Creativo

Desde el día en que estalló "el escándalo del subdesarrollo" se ha hablado, se ha escrito tanto sobre el llamado "tercer mundo", se ha especulado tanto sobre la problemática ele nuestros pueblos, que comenzar un trabajo llamando la atención sobre nuestra peculiaridad puede resultar un lugar demasiado común

Alveolar graft in the cleft lip and palate patient: review of 104 cases

Introduction: Alveolar bone grafting is a vital part of the rehabilitation of cleft patients. The factors that have been most frequently associated with the success of the graft are the age at grafting and the pre-grafting orthodontic treatment. Objectives: 1) Describe the cases of alveolar bone grafts performed at the Maxilofacial Unit of Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona (HSJD); and 2) Analyze the success/failure of alveolar grafts and related variables. Material and Methods: Descriptive retrospective study using a sample of 104 patients who underwent a secondary alveolar graft at the Craniofacial Unit of HSJD between 1998 and 2012. The graft was done by the same surgeon in all patients using bone from the iliac crest. Results: 70% of the patients underwent the procedure before the age of 15 (median 14.45 years); 70% of the graft patients underwent pre-graft maxillary expansion. A total of 100 cases were recorded as successful (median age of 14.58 years, 68 underwent pre-graft expansion) and only 4 were recorded as failures (median age of 17.62 years, 3 underwent pre-graft expansion). We did not find statistically significant differences in age at the time of grafting or pre-surgical expansion when comparing the success and failure groups. We found the success rate of the graft to be 96.2%. Conclusions: The number of failures was too small to establish a statistically significant conclusion in our sample regarding the age at grafting and pre-grafting expansion. The use of alveolar bone grafting from the iliac crest has a very high success rate with a very low incidence of complications. Existing controversies regarding secondary bone grafting and the wide range of success rates found in the literature suggest that it is necessary to establish a specific treatment protocol that ensures the success of this procedure

The value of grounded theory for disentangling inequalities in maternal-child healthcare in contexts of diversity : a psycho-sociopolitical approach

Adopting a psycho-sociopolitical approach, the present paper describes the results of a community-based participatory needs assessment focusing on the perceived needs of women of reproductive age as users of primary healthcare in contexts of migration-driven diversity and socioeconomic vulnerability in the Metropolitan Area of Lisbon. The investigation comprised 64 in-depth interviews with women, including natives and immigrants to Portugal from the main origin countries in the context under study (Brazil, Cape Verde, and other Portuguese- speaking African countries) and a survey of 125 women, again natives and immigrants from these countries. The central role of qualitative methodology and grounded theory, in the framework of a multi-method research, allowed understanding the needs of women as embedded in contexts characterized by asymmetrical power relations, in terms of unequal opportunities and resources, at multiple interrelated ecological levels (personal, relational, organizational, community, socioeconomic, health system/policy, cultural/migration). The priority perceived needs of women were primarily related to socioeconomic disadvantage, severely aggravated in the current contexts of crisis; and factors at the health system level, mainly unequal access to family doctors, excessive waiting lists, and increases in the direct costs of healthcare. Results allow questioning the adequacy of cultural competence approaches for the reduction of inequalities in maternal-child healthcare in the context under study, showing the critical and innovative value of qualitative methodology and grounded theory in research on social justice and health in contexts of diversity characterized by unequal power dynamics.FP7 -Seventh Framework Programme(FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF

Liberation social psychology: learning from Latin America

Liberation Social Psychology (la psicología social de la liberación, LSP) has developed amongst a body of psychologists in Latin America over the last decade. There has been no survey of the field in English, although some of the ideas are of relevance for those working with oppressed groups elsewhere in the world. This article explores the context in which LSP grew from the work of Ignacio Martín-Baró and was developed by Maritza Montero, amongst others. Within LSP, key concepts emerge, including conscientization, realismo-crítico, de-ideologization, a social orientation, the preferential option for the oppressed majorities and methodological eclecticism. The application of LSP is explored with reference to three domains. First, it is suggested that community social psychology as practised in some parts of Latin America reflects LSP in its emphasis on social transformation and participatory methods. Second, psycho-social work with victims of state oppression, which adopts a highly social and societal orientation embodies LSP. Third, social analyses which explicitly adopt socio-psychological-political analyses of the social realities confronting countries in Latin America embrace, in different ways, principles and concepts of LSP. Some of the challenges facing LSP are discussed and open dialogue is encouraged between LSP and critical, community and applied social psychologists. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Lipid alterations in lipid rafts from alzheimer's disease human brain cortex

Lipid rafts are membrane microdomains intimately associated with cell signaling. These biochemical microstructures are characterized by their high contents of sphingolipids, cholesterol and saturated fatty acids and a reduced content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Here, we have purified lipid rafts of human frontal brain cortex from normal and Alzheimer's disease (AD) and characterized their biochemical lipid composition. The results revealed that lipid rafts from AD brains exhibit aberrant lipid profiles compared to healthy brains. In particular, lipid rafts from AD brains displayed abnormally low levels of n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA, mainly 22:6n-3, docosahexaenoic acid) and monoenes (mainly 18:1n-9, oleic acid), as well as reduced unsaturation and peroxidability indexes. Also, multiple relationships between phospholipids and fatty acids were altered in AD lipid rafts. Importantly, no changes were observed in the mole percentage of lipid classes and fatty acids in rafts from normal brains throughout the lifespan (24-85 years). These indications point to the existence of homeostatic mechanisms preserving lipid raft status in normal frontal cortex. The disruption of such mechanisms in AD brains leads to a considerable increase in lipid raft order and viscosity, which may explain the alterations in lipid raft signaling observed in AD

Chemical Properties that Determine Boron Availability in Sugar Cane Soils

Context: Several factors are limiting the behavior and dynamics of boron (B) in the soil. Few results on assimilable B contents in the soil and its relation to other chemical properties have been published. Objective: To determine the contents of assimilable B and the chemical properties that condition its availability in three of the main soil types where sugar cane is cultivated. Methods: The samples were taken at random from the surface (0-20 cm) of three of the main soil types where sugar cane is cultivated in Cuba. Soil assimilable B was determined by extraction with hot water. Classification of assimilable boron concentration relied on category ranges set up by Agrolab, (2005): low (˂0.5 mg kg-1), mid (0.5 a 2.0 mg kg-1), and high (˃2.0 mg kg-1). Results: The concentration of assimilable B varied according to the soil type, with a high dependence on chemical properties. Conclusions: The B contents was highly dependent on variables K2O, P2O5, Mg+ and Na+. The average B concentration was within mid-range values in vertisols and low in brown and ferralitic soils, with high variability. The contents of assimilable B should be further studied, along with the effect of limiting chemical, physical, and biological factors on the soil

Liberation-focused Community Outreach: A Qualitative Exploration of Peer Group Supervision during Disaster Response

While it is clear that community outreach and disaster response must include cultural and social justice competence, there is a dearth of knowledge regarding the process by which this can occur. Guided by liberation psychology, this qualitative study examined the peer group supervision process of psychologists and counselors providing outreach to Haitian communities in Florida after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The findings suggest that peer supervision generated a cyclical process in which the practitioners focused on both content and process themes that were salient to the community outreach. During supervision, practitioners used content information on the community\u27s culture, strengths, and sociopolitical issues to conceptualize the community\u27s experiences and needs. This content informed the outreach process, including the practitioners’ roles and the ways in which they connected and developed respectful relationships with the community. Ongoing peer supervision appeared to facilitate a liberation-focused community outreach and increase consciousness among the practitioners

Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase-2 is expressed in spermatic germ cells and incorporates arachidonic acid into triacylglycerols

Background: De novo glycerolipid synthesis begins with the acylation of glycerol-3 phosphate catalyzed by glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase (GPAT). In mammals, at least four GPAT isoforms have been described, differing in their cell and tissue locations and sensitivity to sulfhydryl reagents. In this work we show that mitochondrial GPAT2 overexpression in CHO-K1 cells increased TAG content and both GPAT and AGPAT activities 2-fold with arachidonoyl-CoA as a substrate, indicating specificity for this fatty acid. Methods and Results: Incubation of GPAT2-transfected CHO-K1 cells with [1-14C]arachidonate for 3 h increased incorporation of [14C]arachidonate into TAG by 40%. Consistently, arachidonic acid was present in the TAG fraction of cells that overexpressed GPAT2, but not in control cells, corroborating GPAT2's role in synthesizing TAG that is rich in arachidonic acid. In rat and mouse testis, Gpat2 mRNA was expressed only in primary spermatocytes; the protein was also detected in late stages of spermatogenesis. During rat sexual maturation, both the testicular TAG content and the arachidonic acid content in the TAG fraction peaked at 30 d, matching the highest expression of Gpat2 mRNA and protein. Conclusions: These results strongly suggest that GPAT2 expression is linked to arachidonoyl-CoA incorporation into TAG in spermatogenic germ cells.Facultad de Ciencias Médica

Disrupting the dynamics of oppression in intercultural research and practice

In this special issue we focus on exploring the tensions, challenges and possibilities for working in contexts where relationships between groups are characterized by dominance and resistance. Some of the impetus lies in our own struggles and frustrations with models, guidelines and ‘recipes’ that have been developed to guide sensitive, competent and empowering research and practice across boundaries of ‘race’, ethnicity and culture. These models and guidelines are often framed as tools that will enable culturally competent transactions across these boundaries

On the Design of an ECOC-Compliant Genetic Algorithm

Genetic Algorithms (GA) have been previously applied to Error-Correcting Output Codes (ECOC) in state-of-the-art works in order to find a suitable coding matrix. Nevertheless, none of the presented techniques directly take into account the properties of the ECOC matrix. As a result the considered search space is unnecessarily large. In this paper, a novel Genetic strategy to optimize the ECOC coding step is presented. This novel strategy redefines the usual crossover and mutation operators in order to take into account the theoretical properties of the ECOC framework. Thus, it reduces the search space and lets the algorithm to converge faster. In addition, a novel operator that is able to enlarge the code in a smart way is introduced. The novel methodology is tested on several UCI datasets and four challenging computer vision problems. Furthermore, the analysis of the results done in terms of performance, code length and number of Support Vectors shows that the optimization process is able to find very efficient codes, in terms of the trade-off between classification performance and the number of classifiers. Finally, classification performance per dichotomizer results shows that the novel proposal is able to obtain similar or even better results while defining a more compact number of dichotomies and SVs compared to state-of-the-art approaches