Search

This work was funded by project PI10/00829 from the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria, http://www.isciii.es/. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript., Leishmaniasis remains one of the world's most devastating neglected tropical diseases. It mainly affects developing countries, where it often co-exists with chronic malnutrition, one of the main risk factors for developing the disease. Few studies have been published, however, on the relationship between leishmaniasis progression and malnutrition. The present paper reports the influence of protein malnutrition on the immune response and visceral disease development in adult hamsters infected with Leishmania infantum fed either standard or low protein diets. The low protein diet induced severe malnutrition in these animals, and upon infection with L. infantum 33% had severe visceral leishmaniasis compared to only 8% of animals fed the standard diet. The infected, malnourished animals showed notable leukocyte depletion, mild specific antibody responses, impairment of lymphoproliferation, presence of parasites in blood (16.67% of the hamsters) and significant increase of the splenic parasite burden. Animals fed standard diet suffered agranulocytosis and monocytopenia, but showed stronger specific immune responses and had lower parasite loads than their malnourished counterparts. The present results show that protein malnutrition promotes visceral leishmaniasis and provide clues regarding the mechanisms underlying the impairment of the immune system., Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Depto. de Medicina y Cirugía Animal, Fac. de Veterinaria, TRUE, pub

The Open World Research Initiative (OWRI)-funded Teacher Training Project aims at developing a framework for embedding film more systematically into Modern Foreign Language (MFL) teaching. Using film and media in MFL teaching can pose certain practical and pedagogical challenges, both in secondary schools and higher education. Taking the case of the language curricula in the UK, it can be difficult to reconcile the need for visual literacy training and the constraints of the programme at lower levels of language proficiency. To address this issue, we developed a teacher training programme focused on using short films. The project also created a competition which involved reviewing short films and piloted it in several schools as an innovative method to integrate intercultural competence and film literacy into existing modern languages syllabi. The positive feedback received shows that reviewing short films enhances key language skills as well as it significantly encourages critical appreciation, communication of ideas, and development of intercultural awareness.

This article introduces this special collection, which focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on language education in the UK and asks what kinds of long-term effects there might be across sectors from primary schools to higher education. Each article in this collection comprises a “dialogue” which took place in the form of an online asynchronous writing “sprint” in one of six areas: primary schools, secondary schools, language teaching in higher education, early career higher education, year abroad and cultural institutions. This introduction analyses the trends, challenges and opportunities drawn from the experiences across the different areas: pedagogical transformation for an effective (digitally mediated) language education; challenges and opportunities for student engagement; and the role of communities of practice in supporting language educators. This article argues that there are valuable lessons which can be extrapolated for wider discussion on the future of Modern Languages education in the UK.

[Objectives] Infective endocarditis (IE) has high mortality and morbidity and requires long hospital stays to deliver the antibiotic treatment recommended in clinical practice guidelines. We aimed to analyse the health outcomes of the use of dalbavancin (DBV) in the consolidation treatment of IEs caused by Gram-positive cocci and to perform a pharmacoeconomic study., [Materials and methods] This observational, retrospective, Spanish multicentre study in patients with IE who received DBV as part of antibiotic treatment in consolidation phase were followed for at least 12 months. The study was approved by the Provincial Committee of the coordinating centre., [Results] The study included 124 subjects, 70.2% male, with a mean age of 67.4 years and median Charlson index of 4 (interquartile range: 2.5–6). Criteria for definite IE were met by 91.1%. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (38.8%), Staphylococcus aureus (22.6%), Enterococcus faecalis (19.4%), and Streptococcus Spp. (9.7%) were isolated more frequently, all susceptible to vancomycin. Before DVB administration, 91.2% had undergone surgery; 60.5% had received a second regimen for 24.5 d (16.6–56); and 20.2% had received a third regimen for 14.5 d (12–19.5). DBV was administered to facilitate discharge in 95.2% of cases. At 12 months, the effectiveness was of 95.9%, and there was 0.8% loss to follow-up, 0.8% IE-related death, and 3.2% relapse. Adverse events were recorded in 3.2%. The hospital stay was reduced by 14 d, and there was a mean savings of 5548.57 €/patient vs. conventional treatments., [Conclusion] DBV is highly effective, safe, and cost-effective as consolidation therapy in patients with IE by Gram-positive cocci, with few adverse events.

José “Pepe” Mujica has become a charismatic figure not only in Latin American politics but across the world. This article analyzes the representation of memory and affect in two recent transnational documentaries that portray Mujica’s personal and political life: Pepe Mujica, Lessons from the Flowerbed (Heidi Specogna, 2015) and El Pepe: A Supreme Life (Emir Kusturica, 2018). It explores how the films represent Mujica’s memories and past, focusing specifically on his political militance as a member of the Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros (MLN-Tupamaros) during the 1960s and 1970s, and his experiences as political prisoner of the military dictatorship. Drawing from memory and screen studies, this work investigates the narrative devices and cinematic strategies used to create meaning out of the past. Finally, this article outlines how Mujica’s discourses are embedded in these films to establish an affective and ethical connection between past and present that elicits a powerful emotional response.

This chapter presents the preliminary results of the research project Transmedia Practices: Open Educational Resources for Students by Students carried out at Manchester Metropolitan University. The aim of this study was twofold. First, this project set out to analyse language student preferences and uses of social media networks, digital tools and video games, as well as their knowledge of transmedia and open educational resources. The main instrument use for data gathering was a questionnaire that also helped to identify the students’ training needs. The second aim was to test if the creation of Open Education Resources (OER) by students could reduce the digital dissonance between informal and formal digital learning. During the project a set of digital artefacts were created by transmedia experts, PhD students, language tutors and the researcher to support the training needs of the students. In the second part of this intervention language learners were encouraged to create digital artifacts based on their assignments and shared them publicly under a Creative Commons CC-BY license. The finding suggests that OER are a very effective tool for developing learners’ digital and transmedia skills and are particularly useful for supporting peer-learning.

En este artículo analizamos la situación regional y con perspectiva de género de la educación obligatoria en España, de acuerdo con los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS), considerando dos aspectos importantes: por una parte, detectando las carencias básicas, acuñando el término pobreza educativa; por otra, midiendo la evolución reciente, introduciendo la idea de progreso. MÉTODO. Como variables, se toman la escolarización a los dos años, tasas de idoneidad a los 12 y 15 años, fracaso escolar, y abandono educativo temprano, en 2008 y 2018, así como los porcentajes de bajo desempeño en PISA 2018 en Matemáticas y Ciencias. Fijados unos objetivos en cada variable, relacionados con la Estrategia 2020, así como umbrales de escasez, definimos un índice de progreso y pobreza, utilizando los datos del Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional 2020 y del informe PISA 2018. RESULTADOS: Las mujeres presentan mejores resultados que los hombres en todas las variables, salvo en PISA Matemáticas. Canarias, Murcia, la Comunidad Valenciana y Extremadura presentan pobreza educativa extrema en 2018. Las regiones de la cornisa Cantábrica y Cataluña no presentan pobreza. Las regiones peor situadas en pobreza son las que han progresado menos en el periodo, aunque todas las regiones han progresado. DISCUSION Y CONCLUSIONES: Los conceptos de pobreza y progreso educativos permiten obtener una visión matizada de la situación y problemas de la educación obligatoria. Las diferencias entre las regiones españolas se mantienen en el periodo, con una Beta convergencia muy débil. Las diferencias de género detectadas pueden responder a roles socioeconómicos fuertemente arraigados. La educación temprana aparece como un elemento importante para mejorar los resultados posteriores. La especialización productiva y la situación económica influyen en el abandono temprano. La reducción de las cifras de pobreza requiere medidas que impliquen el desarrollo integral del alumno., In this article we analyse the regional and gender situation of compulsory education in Spain, following the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), considering two important aspects: on the one hand, detecting basic deficiencies, coining the term educational poverty; on the other hand, measuring recent evolution, introducing the idea of progress. METHOD. As variables, we take school enrolment at two years of age, eligibility rates at 12 and 15 years of age, school failure, and early school leaving, in 2008 and 2018, as well as the percentages of low performance in PISA 2018 in Mathematics and Science. Given targets for each variable, related to the 2020 Strategy, as well as scarcity thresholds, we define both progress and poverty indexes, using data from the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training 2020 and the PISA 2018 report. RESULTS: Females perform better than males in all variables except PISA Mathematics. The Canary Islands, Murcia, the Valencian Community, and Extremadura show extreme educational poverty in 2018. The regions of the Cantabrian coast and Catalonia do not show poverty. The regions worst placed in poverty have made the least progress over the period, although all regions have made progress. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The concepts of poverty and educational progress provide a nuanced view of the situation and problems of compulsory education. Differences between Spanish regions are maintained over the period, with a very weak Beta convergence. The gender differences detected may respond to deeply rooted socio-economic roles. Early education appears as an important element to improve later outcomes. Productive specialisation and economic status influence early drop-out. Reducing poverty figures requires measures involving the holistic development of the learner.

Cytokine expression is fine-tuned by metabolic intermediates, which makes research on immunometabolism suitable to yield drugs with a wider prospect of application than the biological therapies that block proinflammatory cytokines. Switch from oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to glycolysis has been considered a characteristic feature of activated immune cells. However, some stimuli might enhance both routes concomitantly. The connection between the tricarboxylic acid cycle and cytokine expression was scrutinized in human monocyte-derived dendritic cells stimulated with the fungal surrogate zymosan. Results showed that nucleocytosolic citrate and ATP-citrate lyase activity drove IL1B, IL10, and IL23A expression by yielding acetyl-CoA and oxaloacetate, with the latter one supporting glycolysis and OXPHOS by maintaining cytosolic NAD+ and mitochondrial NADH levels through mitochondrial shuttles. Succinate dehydrogenase showed a subunit-specific ability to modulate IL23A and IL10 expression. Succinate dehydrogenase A subunit activity supported cytokine expression through the control of the 2-oxoglutarate/succinate ratio, whereas C and D subunits underpinned cytokine expression by conveying electron flux from complex II to complex III of the electron transport chain. Fatty acids may also fuel the tricarboxylic acid cycle and influence cytokine expression. Overall, these results show that fungal patterns support cytokine expression through a strong boost of glycolysis and OXPHOS supported by the use of pyruvate, citrate, and succinate, along with the compartmentalized NAD(H) redox state maintained by mitochondrial shuttles.