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Different : a story of the Spanish Civil War
\"During the Spanish Civil War and its aftermath, siblings Soccoro and Paco must live with constant secrets while they wait to reunite with their father, who fled Spain due to political persecution\"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
miR-125a, miR-139 and miR-324 contribute to Urocortin protection against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury
Urocortin 1 and 2 (Ucn-1 and Ucn-2) have established protective actions against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injuries. However, little is known about their role in posttranscriptional regulation in the process of cardioprotection. Herein, we investigated whether microRNAs play a role in urocortin-induced cardioprotection. Administration of Ucn-1 and Ucn-2 at the beginning of reperfusion significantly restored cardiac function, as evidenced
ex vivo
in Langendorff-perfused rat hearts and
in vivo
in rat subjected to I/R. Experiments using microarray and qRT-PCR determined that the addition of Ucn-1 at reperfusion modulated the expression of several miRNAs with unknown role in cardiac protection. Ucn-1 enhanced the expression of miR-125a-3p, miR-324-3p; meanwhile it decreased miR-139-3p. Similarly, intravenous infusion of Ucn-2 in rat model of I/R mimicked the effect of Ucn-1 on miR-324-3p and miR-139-3p. The effect of Ucn-1 involves the activation of corticotropin-releasing factor receptor-2, Epac2 and ERK1/2. Moreover, the overexpression of miR-125a-3p, miR-324-3p and miR-139-3p promoted dysregulation of genes expression involved in cell death and apoptosis (BRCA1, BIM, STAT2), in cAMP and Ca
2+
signaling (PDE4a, CASQ1), in cell stress (NFAT5, XBP1, MAP3K12) and in metabolism (CPT2, FoxO1, MTRF1, TAZ). Altogether, these data unveil a novel role of urocortin in myocardial protection, involving posttranscriptional regulation with miRNAs.
Journal Article
Phytoconstituents and ergosterol biosynthesis-targeting antimicrobial activity of nutmeg (Myristica fragans Houtt.) against phytopathogens
In recent years, nutmeg (Myristica fragans Houtt.) has attracted considerable attention in the field of phytochemistry due to its diverse array of bioactive compounds. However, the potential application of nutmeg as a biorational for crop protection has been insufficiently explored. This study investigated the constituents of a nutmeg hydroethanolic extract via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and vibrational spectroscopy. The research explored the extract’s activity against phytopathogenic fungi and oomycetes, elucidating its mechanism of action. The phytochemical profile revealed fatty acids (including tetradecanoic acid, 9-octadecenoic acid, n-hexadecanoic acid, dodecanoic acid, and octadecanoic acid), methoxyeugenol, and elemicin as the main constituents. Previously unreported phytochemicals included veratone, gelsevirine, and montanine. Significant radial growth inhibition of mycelia was observed against Botrytis cinerea, Colletotrichum acutatum, Diplodia corticola, Phytophthora cinnamomi, and especially against Fusarium culmorum. Mode of action investigation, involving Saccharomyces cerevisiae labeled positively with propidium iodide, and a mutant strain affected in ERG6, encoding sterol C-24 methyltransferase, suggested that the extract induces a necrotic type of death and targets ergosterol biosynthesis. The evidence presented underscores the potential of nutmeg as a source of new antimicrobial agents, showing particular promise against F. culmorum.
Journal Article
E-Mentoring in Higher Education: A Structured Literature Review and Implications for Future Research
Mentoring in higher education helps learners acclimate to a new academic topic, increases the likelihood of academic success, and reduces attrition. Learners rely on the expertise and experience of mentors to help them graduate in a timely manner and advance on to their career. As online and distance education becomes more pervasive, computer-mediated mentoring allows learners to connect with their mentors in new ways. Research about mentoring in higher education includes investigations into the efficacy of virtual or e-mentoring. We conducted a literature review of research from 2009 to 2019 to identify relevant elements for implementing e-mentoring programs in higher education. Our research revealed that there is a consistent interest in the subject matter within educational research; however, there is a gap on virtual mentoring in higher education for students conducting offsite internships. Our research reviews e-mentoring programs, identifies how these programs are evaluated, identifies factors of successful programs, and establishes a research agenda in areas of e-mentoring programs for students in offsite internships and how they can be structured to achieve the same level of success.
Journal Article
Thermochromic Materials as Passive Roof Technology: Their Impact on Building Energy Performance
Over the last few years, new materials have been developed which a priori, appear to improve passive energy efficiency in buildings. This article focuses on chromogenic devices that allow changing their optical properties in a reversible manner through some external stimulus. The covering of the envelopes may have different textures or colors, which determine the amount of solar radiation absorbed by the material compared to the incident radiation. In buildings with a high percentage of roof relative to façade, the surface finish plays an interesting role in the energy demand. In the present work, the influence of the application of thermochromic materials to the roofs of commercial buildings is analyzed. It has been demonstrated that the application of a thermochromic surface finish can produce savings of annual energy demand between 1% and 12% in kilowatt-hours and kilograms of CO2 and they become more significant for construction solutions with higher transmittances values. Then, the impact of applying a thermochromic finish per day is analyzed and which transition temperature range will be the most optimal to the highest energy performance is discussed. At the same time, an assessment is made of the optimal cost; although economic investment is not currently amortized, it is a good resource for reducing energy demand in buildings.
Journal Article
Computer-Aided Diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis Using a Support Vector Machine and Optical Coherence Tomography Features
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the feasibility of diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS) using optical coherence tomography (OCT) data and a support vector machine (SVM) as an automatic classifier. Forty-eight MS patients without symptoms of optic neuritis and forty-eight healthy control subjects were selected. Swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) was performed using a DRI (deep-range imaging) Triton OCT device (Topcon Corp., Tokyo, Japan). Mean values (right and left eye) for macular thickness (retinal and choroidal layers) and peripapillary area (retinal nerve fibre layer, retinal, ganglion cell layer—GCL, and choroidal layers) were compared between both groups. Based on the analysis of the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUC), the 3 variables with the greatest discriminant capacity were selected to form the feature vector. A SVM was used as an automatic classifier, obtaining the confusion matrix using leave-one-out cross-validation. Classification performance was assessed with Matthew’s correlation coefficient (MCC) and the AUCCLASSIFIER. The most discriminant variables were found to be the total GCL++ thickness (between inner limiting membrane to inner nuclear layer boundaries), evaluated in the peripapillary area and macular retina thickness in the nasal quadrant of the outer and inner rings. Using the SVM classifier, we obtained the following values: MCC = 0.81, sensitivity = 0.89, specificity = 0.92, accuracy = 0.91, and AUCCLASSIFIER = 0.97. Our findings suggest that it is possible to classify control subjects and MS patients without previous optic neuritis by applying machine-learning techniques to study the structural neurodegeneration in the retina.
Journal Article
Helichrysum stoechas (L.) Moench Inflorescence Extract for Tomato Disease Management
Helichrysum stoechas is a singular halophyte that has been shown to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and allelopathic properties. In the work presented herein, we have characterized its inflorescences hydromethanolic extract and assessed its antifungal activity for the pre- and postharvest management of tomato crop diseases. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry characterization of the extract showed that 4-ethenyl-1,3-benzenediol, 2,3-dihydro-benzofuran, quinic acid, 3,5-dihydroxy-6,7,8-trimethoxy-2-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one, 1,6-anhydro-β-D-glucopyranose, catechol, scopoletin, and maltol were the main constituents. The co-occurrence of pyranones, benzenediols, and quinic acids as phytoconstituents of H. stoechas extract resulted in promising in vitro minimum inhibitory concentrations of 500, 375, 500, 187.5, 187.5, and 375 μg·mL−1 against mycelia of Alternaria alternata, Colletotrichum coccodes, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici, Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, and Verticillium dahliae, respectively. Further, to assess the potential of H. stoechas inflorescence extract for postharvest tomato crop protection, ex situ tests were conducted against C. coccodes, obtaining high protection at a dose of 750 μg·mL−1. Taking into consideration that the demonstrated activity is among the highest reported to date for plant extracts and comparable to that of the synthetic fungicides tested as positive controls, H. stoechas inflorescence extract may be put forward as a promising biorational and may deserve further testing in field-scale studies.
Journal Article
Design of a future scenarios toolkit for an ethical implementation of artificial intelligence in education
In the 1970s, research on artificial intelligence in education emerged with the aim of acknowledging and accommodating the psychological aspects of the learning process. Since then, its applications have evolved and it is now used for student learning and assessment, teachers’ pedagogical practice, management of educational institutions, and lifelong learning. Nevertheless, the ethical challenges of educational programmes using these systems have not been thoroughly studied. Anchored on the theoretical frame of dialogic ethics, this paper presents a section of a participatory futures research project. The goal of the research is to develop a toolkit that educators can use to ensure a smooth and ethical transition to artificial intelligence-based education while preserving the interests of educational development. This paper emphasises the need for an informed and participatory process that involves all stakeholders and begins with an expert consultation through the Delphi method, the results of which allowed the construction of eight hypothetical futures scenarios. These scenarios provide evidence that examining the ethics of using artificial intelligence systems presents an opportunity to reflect on the ethics of education as a whole. They highlight the challenge of balancing the benefits and drawbacks of such systems, especially concerning educational goals and the interplay between diverse educational actors and personal development in educational settings. The study outcomes are intended to encourage discussions on the integration of ethical artificial intelligence in education and facilitate the continuing professional development of teachers by equipping them with scenarios that can be used as a resource for training purposes.
Journal Article
Assessing the willingness of Spanish pre-service secondary school teachers to use group dynamics techniques. Design and validation of an instrument
Nowadays, secondary school teachers are expected to adopt didactic methods that encourage student interaction and increase motivation. The Master’s Degree in Secondary School Teaching prepares pre-service teachers to design and implement group-based teaching methods. To this end, the programme provides both theoretical and practical training, prioritising direct experience with group dynamics techniques for future application in the classroom. This study had two objectives: first, to develop and validate an instrument to assess pre-service teachers’ willingness to use group dynamics techniques; and second, to examine the influence of sex on the instrument’s factorial structure. A mixed-methods approach was applied, structured in two phases: content validity was established through expert judgement, followed by statistical analyses to assess internal structure. The results demonstrated adequate expert agreement, strong internal consistency and a good model fit. Additionally, multigroup analysis supported factorial invariance across sexes. The instrument serves as a valuable tool to assess the willingness of Master’s students to employ group techniques. Findings from this assessment can help tailor support for trainees with different profiles during initial training and inform selection and guidance processes. Moreover, it gauges pre-service teachers’ preparedness to adopt active methodologies, offering a means to measure the programme’s effectiveness in promoting methodological change.
Journal Article
Impact of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic among health care workers in a secondary teaching hospital in Spain
The COVID-19 pandemic has posed a huge challenge to healthcare systems and their personnel worldwide. The study of the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers (HCW), through prevalence studies, will let us know viral expansion, individuals at most risk and the most exposed areas in healthcare organizations. The aim of this study is to gauge the impact of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in our hospital workforce and identify groups and areas at increased risk.
This is a cross-sectional and incidence study carried out on healthcare workers based on molecular and serological diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Of the 3013 HCW invited to participate, 2439 (80.9%) were recruited, including 674 (22.4%) who had previously consulted at the Occupational Health Service (OHS) for confirmed exposure and/or presenting symptoms suggestive of COVID-19. A total of 411 (16.9%) and 264 (10.8%) healthcare workers were SARS-CoV-2 IgG and rRT-PCR positive, respectively. The cumulative prevalence considering all studies (IgG positive HCW and/or rRT-PCR positive detection) was 485 (19.9%). SARS-CoV-2 IgG-positive patients in whom the virus was not detected were 221 (9.1%); up to 151 of them (68.3%) did not report any compatible symptoms nor consult at the OHS for this reason. Men became more infected than women (25% vs 18.5%, p = 0.0009), including when data were also classified by age. COVID-19 cumulative prevalence among the HCW assigned to medical departments was higher (25.2%) than others, as well as among medical staff (25.4%) compared with other professional categories (p<0.01).
The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HCW of our centre has been 19.9%. Doctors and medical services personnel have had the highest prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection, but many of them have not presented compatible symptoms. This emphasizes the performance of continuous surveillance methods of the most exposed health personnel and not only based on the appearance of symptoms.
Journal Article