Dimensions of satisfaction as predictors of loyalty in tourists visiting La Costa del Sol

Title: Dimensions of satisfaction as predictors of loyalty in tourists visiting La Costa del Sol. Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify the dimensions of satisfaction that influence the loyalty of tourists in the Costa del Sol. Method: The sample was composed of 144 tourists from the Costa del Sol. We have adapted and administered the questionnaire of satisfaction of Devesa Fernández, Laguna Garcia and Palacios peaks (1997) and the loyalty of Thorpe (1994) by adding specific items for our destination. We regressed Tourist Loyalty onto the four dimensions of Satisfaction. Results: Altogether, the four dimensions of Satisfaction were found to explain a significant 10% of total variance of Loyalty. The dimension of Satisfaction with Accommodation and Catering was positive and significant predictor of loyalty. Conclusions: It is relevant to ensure high-quality accommodation and catering in order to increase tourist loyalty in La Costa del Sol.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Motivational profile of satisfied tourists in La Costa del Sol

Title: Motivational profile of satisfied tourists in La Costa del Sol. Objective: The present study aimed to analyze the motivational profile of tourists who visit La Costa del Sol. Methods: The sample comprised 144 tourists in the province of Málaga. Two questionnaires were administered: A questionnaire of Tourist Motivation (Devesa Fernández, M., Laguna García, M., & Palacios Picos, A. (1997) and the Questionnaire of Satisfaction (Devesa-Fernández, Laguna-García and Palacios-Picos, 1997). Both questionnaires were adapted to our destiny: La Costa del Sol, by adding specific items related to La Costa del Sol. Analyses of moderation were done to study the interaction between motivational dimensions and overall satisfaction. Results: We found interaction between social and hedonistic motivation. Among tourists with low hedonistic motivation, those with high social motivation to visit the Costa del Sol were less satisfied that those who did not come for social reasons. Interaction between utilitarian and hedonistic motivation was also found. Among tourists with low motivation hedonistic, those who visited us for utilitarian reasons, obtained higher levels of satisfaction. Among tourists with high hedonistic motivation, those who did not come for utilitarian reasons, were more satisfied with the visit.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Evaluación de PH, temperatura y concentración de alginato en el proceso de gelificación iónica como método de conservación del zumo natural de frutas

Evaluar el pH, temperatura y concentración de alginato en el proceso de gelificación iónica como método de conservación del zumo natural de frutas.La técnica de microencapsulación ha sido catalogada como uno de los métodos más eficaces para proteger a los materiales encapsulados de factores externos como el calor y la humedad, permitiendo mantener la estabilidad y mejorando de manera considerable su tiempo de conservación. Al estudiar la microencapsulación mediante gelificación iónica, se concluye de forma unánime que este método resulta ser ideal para preservar las características nutritivas y funcionales en los materiales que han sido encapsulados. La presente investigación tuvo como principal objetivo determinar la influencia de tres factores: pH, temperatura y concentración de alginato de sodio sobre las características de viscosidad, textura y morfología del zumo de frutas gelificado. La metodología empleada fue experimental analizando los datos con un diseño de análisis de superficie de respuesta 2k (k = 3), con tres variables (viscosidad de la mezcla zumo-alginato, textura de ruptura y morfología del gel) y dos niveles en cada variable, posterior al análisis estadístico se obtuvo como resultado que el mejor tratamiento fue ab (pH = 5, temperatura = 35 ºC y concentración de alginato = 1,2 %). En esta investigación se determinó que el pH es el factor más importante en el proceso de gelificación iónica, a valores superiores de 6 e inferiores de 5 se obtienen esferas irregulares con poca estabilidad y frágiles al tacto, siendo el valor de 5 el ideal para obtener esferas perfectas y de textura firme. La viscosidad se relaciona directamente con la morfología, valores entre 2100,00 - 2496,63 cP hacen que el zumo no tenga dificultad de fluir por el instrumento de goteo y en contacto con el baño cálcico formen esferas perfectas. La textura está relacionada de manera directa con la aceptación del producto valores de 0,091 y 0,017 N hacen que las esferas sean fáciles de manipular y al ser consumidas sean del agrado del consumidor, finalmente el tiempo de conservación de este producto fue < 13 días en refrigeración. Concluyendo que la gelificación iónica funciona como método de conservación al formar una capa protectora del zumo frente a factores externos como la luz, temperatura y oxígeno que afectan la calidad del zumo y hacen que este sea de consumo inmediatoIngenierí

Incidencia de la función del Contador Público, en apoyo a las decisiones de los juzgadores en aspectos económicos financieros de la Corte Superior de Justicia de La Libertad

RESUMEN El desarrollo del peritaje contable y su influencia dentro de la sentencia que dicte el juez es muy importante, porque permite tener una idea clara y una opinión independiente acerca del tema en litigio. Por este motivo el estudio trato sobre la forma como el peritaje contable influye en la sentencia que dicta los jueces de la Corte Superior de La Libertad, que utilizan como sustento de sus dictámenes el informe pericial realizado por un perito en un tema en particular. Se determino como conclusión que la labor que desempeñan los peritos es muy importante al momento de generar resultados más exactos y una sentencia que sea la más justa posible. Se determina también que los jueces que ven los casos y que se ayudan de lo que establecen los peritos contables le dan una gran importancia al informe pericial al momento de dictar sentencia. Para complementar el estudio se presenta un caso en el cual se demuestra que el informe pericial influye en la sentencia que da solución al caso motivo de la demanda judicial.ABSTRACT The development of the countable peritaje and their influence inside the sentence that the judge dictates are very important, because he/she allows to have a clear idea and an independent opinion about the topic in litigation. For this reason the study treatment on the form like the countable peritaje influences in the sentence that the judges of the Superior Court of The Freedom that use dictates like sustenance of their verdicts the expert report carried out in particular by an expert in a topic. You determine as conclusion that the work that the experts carry out is very important to the moment to generate more exact results and a sentence that it is the fairrest possible. It is also determined that the judges that come the cases and that they are helped to the countable experts settle down they give a great importance to the expert report to the moment to dictate sentence. To supplement the study a case it is presented in which is demonstrated that the expert report influences in the sentence that gives solution to the case reason of the judicial demand

Ambientes urbanos saludables: Propuestas de intervención

Existe una amplia evidencia empírica de que hay una relación muy estrecha entre el ambiente en el que vivimos y la calidad de vida. Hoy en día la mayoría de la población mundial habita en entornos urbanos. Sin embargo, se ha comprobado en numerosos estudios que la falta de contacto con la naturaleza de los habitantes urbanos se relaciona con algunos trastornos psicológicos como el Trastorno por déficit de atención e hiperactividad (TDHA), agresividad, estrés y numerosos problemas de salud, así como otros efectos como el analfabetismo natural. Por el contrario, los seres humanos tienen una preferencia por los ambientes naturales frente a los ambientes urbanos. Esta afinidad por la naturaleza se conoce como hipótesis de la biofilia, y se han comprobado los numerosos beneficios psicológicos y físicos del contacto con elementos naturales, tanto fuera como dentro de las ciudades: reducción del estrés, recuperación de capacidades cognitivas como la atención y concentración, aumento de la satisfacción y la calidad de vida, e incluso la pronta recuperación de pacientes hospitalizados, cuando éstos tienen acceso a una zona natural como un parque o jardín. Estos beneficios se han observado tanto en adultos como en niños, a pesar de lo cual, su aplicación al diseño urbano (calles y plazas, hospitales, escuelas, residencias, etc.) ha sido muy escasa hasta el momento. Se discute la necesidad de modificar nuestras ciudades de acuerdo con estos principios, de forma que se conviertan en ambientes más sostenibles, amigables, y disfrutables.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Methylation alterations are not a major cause of PTTG1 missregulation

Background: On its physiological cellular context, PTTG1 controls sister chromatid segregation during mitosis. Within its crosstalk to the cellular arrest machinery, relies a checkpoint of integrity for which gained the over name of securin. PTTG1 was found to promote malignant transformation in 3T3 fibroblasts, and further found to be overexpressed in different tumor types. More recently, PTTG1 has been also related to different processes such as DNA repair and found to trans-activate different cellular pathways involving c-myc, bax or p53, among others. PTTG1 over-expression has been correlated to a worse prognosis in thyroid, lung, colorectal cancer patients, and it can not be excluded that this effect may also occur in other tumor types. Despite the clinical relevance and the increasing molecular characterization of PTTG1, the reason for its up-regulation remains unclear. Method: We analysed PTTG1 differential expression in PC-3, DU-145 and LNCaP tumor cell lines, cultured in the presence of the methyl-transferase inhibitor 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine. We also tested whether the CpG island mapping PTTG1 proximal promoter evidenced a differential methylation pattern in differentiated thyroid cancer biopsies concordant to their PTTG1 immunohistochemistry status. Finally, we performed whole-genome LOH studies using Affymetix 50 K microarray technology and FRET analysis to search for allelic imbalances comprising the PTTG1 locus. Conclusion: Our data suggest that neither methylation alterations nor LOH are involved in PTTG1 over-expression. These data, together with those previously reported, point towards a post-transcriptional level of missregulation associated to PTTG1 over-expression.This project was funded by The Fundación de Investigación Biomédica Mutua Madrileña Automovilista. Neocodex have been partially funded by the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia of Spain (FIT-010000-2004-69, PTQ04-1-0006, PTQ2003-0549, PTQ2003-0546 and PTQ2003-0783). MAJ was also supported by SAF2005- 07713-C03-03 and CS by FIS 06/757

A review of cleaning and disinfection guidelines and recommendations following an outbreak of classical scrapie

[EN] Classical scrapie is a prion disease of small ruminants, the infectious agent of which has been shown to be extremely persistent in the environment. Cleaning and disinfection (C&D) after a scrapie outbreak is currently recommended by many governments' veterinary advisors and implemented in most farms affected. Yet, the effectiveness of these procedures remains unclear. The aim of this study was to review existing literature and guidelines regarding farm C&D protocols following classical scrapie outbreaks and assess their effectiveness and the challenges that translation of policy and legislative requirements present at a practical level. A review of the literature was conducted to identify the on-farm C&D protocols used following outbreaks of scrapie, assess those materials with high risk for persistence of the scrapie agent on farms, and review the existing evidence of the effectiveness of recommended C&D protocols. An expert workshop was also organised in Great Britain (GB) to assess: the decision-making process used when implementing C&D protocols on GB farms, the experts' perceptions on the effectiveness of these protocols and changes needed, and their views on potential recommendations for policy and research. Outputs of the literature review revealed that the current recommended protocol for C&D [1 h treatment with sodium hypochlorite containing 20,000 ppm free chlorine or 2 M sodium hydroxide (NaOH)] is based on labo-ratory experiments. Only four field farm experiments have been conducted, indicating a lack of data on effec-tiveness of C&D protocols on farms by the re-occurrence of scrapie infection post re-stocking. Recommendations related to the control of outdoor environment, which are difficult and expensive to implement, vary between countries. The expert workshop concluded that there are no practical, cost-effective C&D alternatives to be considered at this time, with control therefore based on C&D only in combination with additional time restrictions on re-stocking and replacement with non-susceptible livestock or more genetically resistant types, where available. Participants agreed that C&D should still be completed on scrapie affected farms, as it is considered to be "good disease practice" and likely to reduce the levels of the prion protein. Participants felt that any additional protocols developed should not be "too prescriptive" (should not be written down in specific policies) because of significant variation in farm types, farm equipment and installations. Under this scenario, control of classical scrapie on farms should be designed with a level of C&D in combination with re-stocking temporal ban and replacement with livestock of limited susceptibility.The APHA would like to thank all the expert contributions at the workshop. This study was funded by Defra (UK) under Project SE1960 and the Government of education and science of the Generalitat Valenciana (Spain)Alarcon, P.; Marco-Jiménez, F.; Horigan, V.; Ortiz-Pelaez, A.; Rajanayagam, B.; Dryden, A.; Simmons, H.... (2021). A review of cleaning and disinfection guidelines and recommendations following an outbreak of classical scrapie. Preventive Veterinary Medicine. 193:1-9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2021.1053881919

Green kiwifruit (lat. Actinidia deliciosa var. Hayward) and maintenance of normal defecation: evaluation of a health claim pursuant to Article 13(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006

Following an application from Zespri International Limited, submitted for authorisation of a health claim pursuant to Article 13(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 via the Competent Authority of Belgium, the EFSA Panel&nbsp;on Nutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens (NDA) was asked to deliver an opinion on the scientific substantiation of a health claim related to green kiwifruit (lat. Actinidia deliciosa var. Hayward) and maintenance of normal defecation. The scope of the application was proposed to fall under a health claim based on newly developed scientific evidence. The food proposed by the applicant as the subject of the health claim is green kiwifruit. The Panel&nbsp;considers that green kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa var. Hayward) is sufficiently characterised. The claimed effect proposed by the applicant is 'maintenance of normal defecation'. Maintenance of normal defecation is a beneficial physiological effect provided that it does not result in diarrhoea. All human intervention studies submitted had different limitations and could not be used on their own for the scientific substantiation of the claim. However, the results of six pertinent human intervention studies are consistent with respect to an effect of consuming daily between two and four green kiwifruits var. Hayward on an increase in stool frequency. Two out of four studies in which a validated instrument was used to assess stool consistency showed an effect also on stool consistency. There is evidence for a plausible mechanism by which kiwifruit could exert an effect on normal defecation. The consumption of kiwifruit in the studies did not result in diarrhoea. A cause and effect relationship has been established between the consumption of green kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa var. Hayward) and maintenance of normal defecation. The following wordings reflect the scientific evidence: 'consumption of kiwifruit contributes to the maintenance of normal defecation'. In order to obtain the claimed effect, two large green kiwifruits (i.e. around 200 g of kiwi flesh) should be consumed

Human iPSC derived disease model of MERTK-associated retinitis pigmentosa

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) represents a genetically heterogeneous group of retinal dystrophies affecting mainly the rod photoreceptors and in some instances also the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells of the retina. Clinical symptoms and disease progression leading to moderate to severe loss of vision are well established and despite significant progress in the identification of causative genes, the disease pathology remains unclear. Lack of this understanding has so far hindered development of effective therapies. Here we report successful generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from skin fibroblasts of a patient harboring a novel Ser331Cysfs*5 mutation in the MERTK gene. The patient was diagnosed with an early onset and severe form of autosomal recessive RP (arRP). Upon differentiation of these iPSC towards RPE, patient-specific RPE cells exhibited defective phagocytosis, a characteristic phenotype of MERTK deficiency observed in human patients and animal models. Thus we have created a faithful cellular model of arRP incorporating the human genetic background which will allow us to investigate in detail the disease mechanism, explore screening of a variety of therapeutic compounds/reagents and design either combined cell and gene- based therapies or independent approaches.This work was supported by Andalusian Health Council (PI-0324-2013), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI13/01331), Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness-FEDER BFU2012-36845, Instituto de Salud Carlos III RETICS RD12/0034/0010 and Academy of Finland (218050; 272808)

Efficacy of an infant formula manufactured from a specific protein hydrolysate derived from whey protein isolate and concentrate produced by Société des Produits Nestlé S.A. in reducing the risk of developing atopic dermatitis

The European Commission asked EFSA to evaluate the efficacy of an infant formula, containing a specific protein hydrolysate derived from whey protein isolate and concentrate and manufactured by Société des Produits Nestlé S.A., in reducing the risk of developing atopic dermatitis in infants with a family history of allergy. This was following the submission of a dossier by Société des Produits Nestlé S.A. to the European Commission, in the context of Regulation (EU) 2016/127. The protein hydrolysate from which the infant formula is produced is included in Annex I and II of Commission delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/127 as suitable protein source for the manufacture of infant and follow-on formulae. This opinion does not cover the assessment of the nutritional safety and suitability of the infant formula or the safety of the food enzymes used in the manufacture of the protein hydrolysate. The Panel&nbsp;considers that, in relation to the effect that is claimed, the infant formula under evaluation is not sufficiently characterised with respect to the molecular weight distribution of peptides. From the human intervention studies submitted, no conclusions could be drawn on the efficacy of the infant formula in reducing the risk of developing atopic dermatitis. The Panel&nbsp;concludes that a cause-and-effect relationship has not been established between the consumption of the infant formula under evaluation and the reduction in the risk of developing atopic dermatitis in infants with a family history of allergy