los medios electrónicos en la modalidad contractual de licitación pública: una comparación entre el derecho colombiano y chileno

Los procesos de contratación entre el Estado y los particulares han sido revestidos a lo largo de la historia de múltiples formalismos que se han traducido en reducida participación del sector privado en la contratación, así como en incentivos para las prácticas corruptas. La Licitación Pública, pese a ser la norma por excelencia para seleccionar los oferentes mediante una evaluación objetiva no es la comúnmente aplicada, y parte de esa problemática es debida al mal uso de las Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicación a los procesos.En este documento se analiza cómo ha sido la evolución histórica de los procesos de licitación pública en Colombia y Chile y la participación de los medios electrónicos como mecanismos que permiten una mayor transparencia, así como las limitaciones actuales que no han sido subsanadas pese a un cambio de normatividad constante.Se resaltan además algunos aspectos relevantes que contiene la legislación colombiana asimilados al sistema electrónico chileno www.chilecompra.cl, que desde hace diez años inició con una plataforma de contratación por vía digital, con fuerte influencia del mercado globalizado y aperturista de la nación del cono sur, con características relativamente aplicables a la Colombia del siglo XXI

Host Cell Phosphatidylcholine Is a Key Mediator of Malaria Parasite Survival during Liver Stage Infection

During invasion, Plasmodium, the causative agent of malaria, wraps itself in a parasitophorous vacuole membrane (PVM), which constitutes a critical interface between the parasite and its host cell. Within hepatocytes, each Plasmodium sporozoite generates thousands of new parasites, creating high demand for lipids to support this replication and enlarge the PVM. Here, a global analysis of the total lipid repertoire of Plasmodium-infected hepatocytes reveals an enrichment of neutral lipids and the major membrane phospholipid, phosphatidylcholine (PC). While infection is unaffected in mice deficient in key enzymes involved in neutral lipid synthesis and lipolysis, ablation of rate-limiting enzymes in hepatic PC biosynthetic pathways significantly decreases parasite numbers. Host PC is taken up by both P. berghei and P. falciparum and is necessary for correct localization of parasite proteins to the PVM, which is essential for parasite survival. Thus, Plasmodium relies on the abundance of these lipids within hepatocytes to support infection.Seventh Framework Programme (European Commission) (Grant Agreement 311502)Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (Grant EXCL/IMI-MIC/0056/2012)Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (Grant PTDC/IMI-MIC/1568/2012

A single-cell atlas of Plasmodium falciparum transmission through the mosquito

Malaria parasites have a complex life cycle featuring diverse developmental strategies, each uniquely adapted to navigate specific host environments. Here we use single-cell transcriptomics to illuminate gene usage across the transmission cycle of the most virulent agent of human malaria - Plasmodium falciparum. We reveal developmental trajectories associated with the colonization of the mosquito midgut and salivary glands and elucidate the transcriptional signatures of each transmissible stage. Additionally, we identify both conserved and non-conserved gene usage between human and rodent parasites, which point to both essential mechanisms in malaria transmission and species-specific adaptations potentially linked to host tropism. Together, the data presented here, which are made freely available via an interactive website, provide a fine-grained atlas that enables intensive investigation of the P. falciparum transcriptional journey. As well as providing insights into gene function across the transmission cycle, the atlas opens the door for identification of drug and vaccine targets to stop malaria transmission and thereby prevent disease

Dissection-independent production of Plasmodium sporozoites from whole mosquitoes.

Progress towards a protective vaccine against malaria remains slow. To date, only limited protection has been routinely achieved following immunisation with either whole-parasite (sporozoite) or subunit-based vaccines. One major roadblock to vaccine progress, and to pre-erythrocytic parasite biology in general, is the continued reliance on manual salivary gland dissection for sporozoite isolation from infected mosquitoes. Here, we report development of a multi-step method, based on batch processing of homogenised whole mosquitoes, slurry, and density-gradient filtration, which combined with free-flow electrophoresis rapidly produces a pure, infective sporozoite inoculum. Human-infective Plasmodium falciparum and rodent-infective Plasmodium berghei sporozoites produced in this way are two- to threefold more infective than salivary gland dissection sporozoites in in vitro hepatocyte infection assays. In an in vivo rodent malaria model, the same P. berghei sporozoites confer sterile protection from mosquito-bite challenge when immunisation is delivered intravenously or 60-70% protection when delivered intramuscularly. By improving purity, infectivity, and immunogenicity, this method represents a key advancement in capacity to produce research-grade sporozoites, which should impact delivery of a whole-parasite based malaria vaccine at scale in the future

Muscle strength in adult patients with chronic kidney failure at the National Hospital and Military Hospital in 2021

Introducción: la fuerza muscular puede disminuir en los pacientes con insuficiencia renal crónica por diversas causas. Objetivos: determinar las variables antropométricas, clínicas y la fuerza muscular en pacientes adultos con insuficiencia renal crónica. Metodología: se aplicó un diseño observacional, descriptivo, transversal. Se incluyeron varones y mujeres, mayores de 17 años, portadores de insuficiencia renal crónica que asistían al Hospital Nacional (Itauguá) y Hospital Militar (Asunción), Paraguay, entre abril y noviembre 2021. Se determinaron variables antropométricas, clínicas y laboratoriales. La fuerza muscular se midió con un dinamómetro de mano. Se utilizó un grupo de sujetos jóvenes sanos como grupo control para la comparación de la fuerza muscular. Se aplicó estadística descriptiva con el programa estadístico Epi Info 7™. La investigación fue aprobada por el Comité de Ética de la Universidad Privada del Este, Paraguay. Resultados: ingresaron al estudio 119 sujetos, siendo 62 (52%) del sexo masculino con edad media 56±15 años y 57 (48%) del sexo femenino, con edad media 51±16 años. La media de la depuración de creatinina fue 16,4±17,9 mL/min. La etiología más común fue la asociación de hipertensión arterial y diabetes mellitus (45%). Actuaron de grupo control 99 mujeres con edad media 25±5 años y 51 varones con edad media 26±5 años. Al comparar la fuerza entre los pacientes y los sujetos sanos se halló 66,4% de fuerza muscular disminuida entre los portadores de insuficiencia renal crónica. Conclusión: la fuerza muscular se halla disminuida en 66,4% de los pacientes insuficiencia renal crónica. Se recomienda la detección oportuna y el tratamiento precoz del déficit de la fuerza muscular en este grupo de pacientes.Introduction: muscle strength may decrease in patients with chronic kidney failure due to various causes. Objective: to determine the anthropometric and clinical variables and muscle strength in adult patients with chronic kidney failure. Methodology: an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional design was applied. Men and women, older than 17 years, with chronic kidney failure who attended the National Hospital (Itauguá) and Military Hospital (Asunción), Paraguay, between April and November 2021 were included. Anthropometric, clinical and laboratory variables were determined. Muscle strength was measured with a hand dynamometer. A group of healthy young subjects was used as a control group for the comparison of muscle strength. Descriptive statistics were applied with the statistical program Epi Info 7 ™. The research was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Universidad Privada del Este, Paraguay. Results: 119 subjects entered the study, being 62 (52%) males with a mean age 56 ± 15 years and 57 (48%) females, with a mean age 51 ± 16 years. The mean creatinine clearance was 16.4 ± 17.9 mL / min. The most common etiology was the association of arterial hypertension and diabetes mellitus (45%). The control group included 99 women with a mean age 25 ± 5 years and 51 men with a mean age 26 ± 5 years. When comparing strength between patients and healthy subjects, 66.4% decreased muscle strength was found among patients with chronic renal failure. Conclusion: muscle strength is decreased in 66.4% of chronic kidney failure patients. Early detection and early treatment of muscle strength deficit is recommended in this group of patients

SARS-CoV-2 introductions and early dynamics of the epidemic in Portugal

Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal was rapidly implemented by the National Institute of Health in the early stages of the COVID-19 epidemic, in collaboration with more than 50 laboratories distributed nationwide. Methods By applying recent phylodynamic models that allow integration of individual-based travel history, we reconstructed and characterized the spatio-temporal dynamics of SARSCoV-2 introductions and early dissemination in Portugal. Results We detected at least 277 independent SARS-CoV-2 introductions, mostly from European countries (namely the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, and Switzerland), which were consistent with the countries with the highest connectivity with Portugal. Although most introductions were estimated to have occurred during early March 2020, it is likely that SARS-CoV-2 was silently circulating in Portugal throughout February, before the first cases were confirmed. Conclusions Here we conclude that the earlier implementation of measures could have minimized the number of introductions and subsequent virus expansion in Portugal. This study lays the foundation for genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal, and highlights the need for systematic and geographically-representative genomic surveillance.We gratefully acknowledge to Sara Hill and Nuno Faria (University of Oxford) and Joshua Quick and Nick Loman (University of Birmingham) for kindly providing us with the initial sets of Artic Network primers for NGS; Rafael Mamede (MRamirez team, IMM, Lisbon) for developing and sharing a bioinformatics script for sequence curation (https://github.com/rfm-targa/BioinfUtils); Philippe Lemey (KU Leuven) for providing guidance on the implementation of the phylodynamic models; Joshua L. Cherry (National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health) for providing guidance with the subsampling strategies; and all authors, originating and submitting laboratories who have contributed genome data on GISAID (https://www.gisaid.org/) on which part of this research is based. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the view of the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the United States government. This study is co-funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and Agência de Investigação Clínica e Inovação Biomédica (234_596874175) on behalf of the Research 4 COVID-19 call. Some infrastructural resources used in this study come from the GenomePT project (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022184), supported by COMPETE 2020 - Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation (POCI), Lisboa Portugal Regional Operational Programme (Lisboa2020), Algarve Portugal Regional Operational Programme (CRESC Algarve2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Molecular mechanisms controlling chemokine-dependent T lymphocyte polarization and locomotion

PARIS7-Bibliothèque centrale (751132105) / SudocSudocFranceF

Single-cell views of the Plasmodium life cycle

International audienceMalaria-causing Plasmodium parasites undergo multiple phenotypic transitions as they cycle between diverse niches in the mammalian and mosquito hosts. Recent applications of single-cell technologies to Plasmodium have enabled the systematic investigation of the distinct stages across the life cycle. Most single-cell data have focused on the parasite exclusively, but a few studies have started to profile both parasite and host cells to shed light on the heterogeneity of cell states that underpin host-parasite interactions. In this opinion article, we highlight how atlasing initiatives are starting to be used to infer functional interactions between parasite and host and could be a powerful tool in drug discovery and vaccine development

Evaluación e intervención nutricional en pacientes con Pancreatitis Aguda. : Resultados de una experiencia en el Hospital Nacional Alejandro Posadas.

Introduction: Acute Pancreatitis (AP) is a highly metabolic disease. An early initiation of oral or enteral feeding can self-limit catabolism and lead to better outcomes. The nutritional treatment implemented in hospitalized patients in Argentina is unknown. Objective: Report the nutritional status and intervention implemented on patients with acute pancreatitis admitted to the Hospital Nacional Alejandro Posadas. Methods: Transversal, observational, analytical and retrospective study. A data base with information collected from October 2019 to October 2021 at a third level hospital in Buenos Aires was used. A descriptive analysis of the variables was carried out and the Tau b de Kendall test was used to assess association (p<0.05). Results: A sample of 68 was obtained. 66.18% female with a median age of 41.3 years. 85.3% of the AP were mild, 2.9% moderate and 11.8% severe. The median Body Mass Index (BMI) was 29.4 kg/m2. 44.2% presented Malnutrition (MN) according to the Subjective Global Assessment (SGA). SGA was associated with AP severity (p <0.001) and complications (p <0.001), but not with BMI (p 0.4). 25.4% start edearly oral feeding. 7.35% received enteral nutrition and 4.4% parenteral nutrition during hospitalization. Pancreatic necrosis was recorded in 14.7%. Conclusions: MN was present independently from BMI and was associated with greater complications. Most patients started late oral feeding with liquids. All patients with pancreatic necrosis received enteral/parenteral nutrition. Key Word: Acute Pancreatitis; Nutritional Status; Nutrition TherapyIntroducción: La Pancreatitis Aguda (PA) es una enfermedad altamente metabólica. El inicio temprano de la alimentación autolimita el catabolismo y conlleva a mejores resultados. Se desconoce el tratamiento nutricional implementado en la Argentina. Objetivos: Conocer el estado nutricional y analizar la intervención nutricional en los pacientes con PA internados en el Hospital Nacional Alejandro Posadas. Métodos: Estudio transversal, observacional, analítico con carga de datos retrospectiva. Se utilizó información recabada desde octubre 2019 a octubre 2021 en un hospital de tercer nivel de Buenos Aires. Se realizó un análisis descriptivo de las variables y el Test Tau b de Kendall para evaluar asociación (p<0,05). Resultados: Se obtuvo una muestra de 68 pacientes. El 66,18% femenino con una mediana de edad 41,3 años. El 85,3% presentó PA de gravedad leve, 2,9% moderada y 11,8% grave. La mediana del Índice de Masa Corporal fue 29,4 kg/m2. El 44,2% presentó malnutrición (MN) según Valoración Global Subjetiva (VGS). La VGS se asoció significativamente con la gravedad de la PA (p <0.001) y la aparición de complicaciones (p <0.001) no así con el IMC (p 0.4).  El 25,4% inició la vía oral (VO) de forma precoz, el 7,35% recibió Nutrición Enteral (NE) y 4,4% Nutrición Parenteral (NP). Se registró necrosis pancreática en 14,7%. Conclusiones: La MN se presentó independientemente del IMC y se relacionó con mayores complicaciones. La mayoría de los pacientes iniciaron la vía oral con líquidos y de forma tardía. Todos los pacientes con necrosis pancreática recibieron NE y/o NP. Palabras Claves: Pancreatitis Aguda; Evaluación Nutricional; Terapia Nutriciona