Afrodescendencia y territorio. Identidades afro-rurales en el Valle de Azapa (Chile)

This article analyzes the link between territory and Afro-descendant identity in the Azapa Valley. Since 2000, an Afro-Chilean movement has emerged to demand state recognition. Within it, a particular group claims the valley as its own territory, which shows changes as a result of the introduction of agroindustries and seed companies. At the methodological level, between 2012 and 2014, an ethnographic study was conducted on the history of black populations and their link with the valley. It is concluded that the emergence of an "Afro- Azapeño" identity is presented as one of the resources that mobilizes collective actions for territorial defense.Este artículo analiza la vinculación entre territorio e identidad afrodescendiente en el Valle de Azapa. Desde el año 2000, surge un movimiento afrochileno que demanda su reconocimiento estatal. En su interior, un grupo particular reivindica el valle como su propio territorio, el cual muestra cambios producto de la introducción de agroindustrias y semilleras. A nivel metodológico, entre 2012 y 2014, se realiza un estudio etnográfico sobre la historia de las poblaciones negras y su vinculación con el valle. Se concluye que el surgimiento de una identidad «afro-azapeña» se presenta como uno de los recursos que moviliza acciones colectivas para la defensa territorial

Of Advances and Setbacks: Policies and Regulations for Gender Equality in Science and Higher Education in Chile (2015-2023)

El artículo presenta una revisión sistemática sobre las políticas y normativas para la igualdad de género en ciencias y educación superior en Chile, entre 2015 y 2023, promovidos por el Estado y universidades del país. Se contextualizarán las desigualdades de género y su relación con la enseñanza superior, desde los noventa, y se ofrecerá una caracterización estadística de las inequidades en estos ámbitos. Luego, se revisarán políticas nacionales y acciones promovidas por las universidades. Finalizamos con los ejes conclusivos, observando la contradicción entre limitaciones y avances en materia de género en las ciencias y educación superior chilenas.This article presents a systematic review of the policies and regulations for gender equality in science and higher education in Chile between 2015 and 2023, promoted by the national State and universities. The text historically contextualizes the gender inequalities and their relationship with Chilean higher education since the nineties and offers a statistical characterization of the inequities in these areas. Then, the national policies and the actions promoted by the universities are reviewed. We conclude by discussing conclusive axes, observing the contradiction between limitations and advances regarding gender in Chilean sciences and higher education.Fil: Lube Guizardi, Menara. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Martin. Instituto de Altos Estudios Sociales. Centro de Estudios En Antropología; Argentina. Universidad de Tarapaca.; ChileFil: Nazal Moreno, Esteban Assmet. Universidad Alberto Hurtado; ChileFil: Araya Morales, Isabel Margarita. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; ChileFil: López Contreras, Eleonora. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; Chil

Effects of Four Formulations of Prostaglandin Analogs on Eye Surface Cells. A Comparative Study

We evaluated the cytotoxic effects of four prostaglandin analogs (PGAs) used to treat glaucoma. First we established primary cultures of conjunctival stromal cells from healthy donors. Then cell cultures were incubated with different concentrations (0, 0.1, 1, 5, 25, 50 and 100%) of commercial formulations of bimatoprost, tafluprost, travoprost and latanoprost for increasing periods (5 and 30 min, 1 h, 6 h and 24 h) and cell survival was assessed with three different methods: WST-1, MTT and calcein/AM-ethidium homodimer-1 assays. Our results showed that all PGAs were associated with a certain level of cell damage, which correlated significantly with the concentration of PGA used, and to a lesser extent with culture time. Tafluprost tended to be less toxic than bimatoprost, travoprost and latanoprost after all culture periods. The results for WST-1, MTT and calcein/AM-ethidium homodimer-1 correlated closely. When the average lethal dose 50 was calculated, we found that the most cytotoxic drug was latanoprost, whereas tafluprost was the most sparing of the ocular surface in vitro. These results indicate the need to design novel PGAs with high effectiveness but free from the cytotoxic effects that we found, or at least to obtain drugs that are functional at low dosages. The fact that the commercial formulation of tafluprost used in this work was preservative-free may support the current tendency to eliminate preservatives from eye drops for clinical use.This study was supported by the Spanish Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica (I+D+I) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Instituto de Salud Carlos III), grants FIS PI11/1582 and FIS PI14/0955 (co-financed by FEDER funds, European Union) and by Grant P10-CTS-6060 from the Consejería de Economía, Innovación, Ciencia y Empleo, Junta de Andalucia, Spain (Proyectos de Excelencia)

SARS-CoV-2 S Protein Reduces Cytoprotective Defenses and Promotes Human Endothelial Cell Senescence

Premature vascular aging and endothelial cell senescence are major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and atherothrombotic disturbances, which are main complications of both acute and long COVID-19. The S protein of SARS-CoV2, which acts as the receptor binding protein for the viral infection, is able to induce endothelial cells inflammation and it has been found as an isolated element in the circulation and in human tissues reservoirs months after infection. Here, we investigated whether the S protein is able to directly induce endothelial cell senescence and deciphered some of the mechanisms involved. In primary cultures of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), SARS-CoV-2 S protein enhanced in a concentration-dependent manner the cellular content of senescence and DNA damage response markers (senescence-associated-β galactosidase, γH2AX), as well as growth-arrest effectors (p53, p21, p16). In parallel, the S protein reduced the availability of cytoprotective proteins, such as the anti-aging protein klotho, Nrf2 or heme oxygenase-1, and caused functional harm by impairing ex vivo endothelial-dependent vasorelaxation in murine microvessels. These effects were prevented by the pharmacological inhibition of the NLRP3 inflammasome with MCC950. Furthermore, the supplementation with either recombinant klotho or angiotensin-(1-7), equally protected against the pro-senescence, pro-inflammatory and pro-oxidant action of the S protein. Globally, this study proposes novel mechanisms of disease in the context of COVID-19 and its vascular sequelae and provides pharmacological clues in order to prevent such complications.This work was supported by grants from REACT-EU-Comunidad de Madrid and the European Regional Development Fund (SPACE2-CV-COVID-CM) to CP and OL, Plan Nacional I+D (PID2020-115590RB-100/AEI/https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033) to CP and CFSF. Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria-FIS Carlos III (PI20/00923) to OL. Plan Nacional I+D (PID2022-137373OB-I00 granted by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/ 501100011033 / FEDER, UE to ISP. Plan Nacional I+D (PID2021-126274OB-I00) to FC. L.S. is the recipient of FPI Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (SFPI / 2020-00053). IV is the recipient of a Sara Borrell postdoctoral grant (CD22/00101). SF was supported by Comunidad de Madrid grants PEJ-2021-TL/BMD-22441.Peer reviewe

La renovación de la palabra en el bicentenario de la Argentina : los colores de la mirada lingüística

El libro reúne trabajos en los que se exponen resultados de investigaciones presentadas por investigadores de Argentina, Chile, Brasil, España, Italia y Alemania en el XII Congreso de la Sociedad Argentina de Lingüística (SAL), Bicentenario: la renovación de la palabra, realizado en Mendoza, Argentina, entre el 6 y el 9 de abril de 2010. Las temáticas abordadas en los 167 capítulos muestran las grandes líneas de investigación que se desarrollan fundamentalmente en nuestro país, pero también en los otros países mencionados arriba, y señalan además las áreas que recién se inician, con poca tradición en nuestro país y que deberían fomentarse. Los trabajos aquí publicados se enmarcan dentro de las siguientes disciplinas y/o campos de investigación: Fonología, Sintaxis, Semántica y Pragmática, Lingüística Cognitiva, Análisis del Discurso, Psicolingüística, Adquisición de la Lengua, Sociolingüística y Dialectología, Didáctica de la lengua, Lingüística Aplicada, Lingüística Computacional, Historia de la Lengua y la Lingüística, Lenguas Aborígenes, Filosofía del Lenguaje, Lexicología y Terminología

Search for eccentric black hole coalescences during the third observing run of LIGO and Virgo

Despite the growing number of confident binary black hole coalescences observed through gravitational waves so far, the astrophysical origin of these binaries remains uncertain. Orbital eccentricity is one of the clearest tracers of binary formation channels. Identifying binary eccentricity, however, remains challenging due to the limited availability of gravitational waveforms that include effects of eccentricity. Here, we present observational results for a waveform-independent search sensitive to eccentric black hole coalescences, covering the third observing run (O3) of the LIGO and Virgo detectors. We identified no new high-significance candidates beyond those that were already identified with searches focusing on quasi-circular binaries. We determine the sensitivity of our search to high-mass (total mass M>70 M⊙) binaries covering eccentricities up to 0.3 at 15 Hz orbital frequency, and use this to compare model predictions to search results. Assuming all detections are indeed quasi-circular, for our fiducial population model, we place an upper limit for the merger rate density of high-mass binaries with eccentricities 0<e≤0.3 at 0.33 Gpc−3 yr−1 at 90\% confidence level

Ultralight vector dark matter search using data from the KAGRA O3GK run

Among the various candidates for dark matter (DM), ultralight vector DM can be probed by laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors through the measurement of oscillating length changes in the arm cavities. In this context, KAGRA has a unique feature due to differing compositions of its mirrors, enhancing the signal of vector DM in the length change in the auxiliary channels. Here we present the result of a search for U(1)B−L gauge boson DM using the KAGRA data from auxiliary length channels during the first joint observation run together with GEO600. By applying our search pipeline, which takes into account the stochastic nature of ultralight DM, upper bounds on the coupling strength between the U(1)B−L gauge boson and ordinary matter are obtained for a range of DM masses. While our constraints are less stringent than those derived from previous experiments, this study demonstrates the applicability of our method to the lower-mass vector DM search, which is made difficult in this measurement by the short observation time compared to the auto-correlation time scale of DM

Afrodescendencia y territorio. Identidades afro-rurales en el Valle de Azapa (Chile)

Este artículo analiza la vinculación entre territorio e identidad afrodescendiente en el Valle de Azapa. Desde el año 2000, surge un movimiento afrochileno que demanda su reconocimiento estatal. En su interior, un grupo particular reivindica el valle como su propio territorio, el cual muestra cambios producto de la introducción de agroindustrias y semilleras. A nivel metodológico, entre 2012 y 2014, se realiza un estudio etnográfico sobre la historia de las poblaciones negras y su vinculación con el valle. Se concluye que el surgimiento de una identidad «afro-azapeña» se presenta como uno de los recursos que moviliza acciones colectivas para la defensa territorial.This article analyzes the link between territory and Afro-descendant identity in the Azapa Valley. Since 2000, an Afro-Chilean movement has emerged to demand state recognition. Within it, a particular group claims the valley as its own territory, which shows changes as a result of the introduction of agroindustries and seed companies. At the methodological level, between 2012 and 2014, an ethnographic study was conducted on the history of black populations and their link with the valley. It is concluded that the emergence of an "Afro- Azapeño" identity is presented as one of the resources that mobilizes collective actions for territorial defense

Integración laboral de inmigrantes haitianos, dominicanos y colombianos en Santiago de Chile

En el actual contexto de la globalización, caracterizado por la reestructuración del sistema de producción capitalista y de las relaciones de trabajo, la migración presenta nuevas y particulares características. A nivel mundial, estamos en presencia de una polarización del mercado laboral, donde conviven empleos estables y bien remunerados con otros informales y ocasionales. Sumado a ello, nos encontramos con trabajadores informales en medios formales, lo cual evidencia las nuevas maneras en que se presenta la informalidad. A nivel nacional, desde la vuelta a la democracia, Chile presenta un aumento considerable de población inmigrante latinoamericana, la cual llega con el objetivo principal de integrarse al mercado laboral. En este marco es que se habla de “inmigrantes laborales”. Chile es un país con una baja tasa de informalidad laboral; con una creciente llegada de inmigrantes laborales y una débil presencia del Estado en cuanto a la integración de la población extranjera. La incorporación de éstos al mercado laboral nacional, considerados mano de obra barata, adquiere características particulares que a través de la presente investigación exploratoria con inmigrantes colombianos, haitianos y dominicanos (la “nueva inmigración”) se pretenden develar. Este artículo abordará la creciente inserción de estos inmigrantes al mundo laboral chileno, sus problemáticas para trabajar en Chile y el contradictorio juego de inclusión/exclusión social al que se ven enfrentados