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Human Embryonic Kidney cells (HEK293) are a popular host for recombinant protein expression and production in the biotechnological industry. This has driven within both, the scientific and the engineering communities, the search for strategies to increase their protein productivity. The present work is inserted into this search exploring the impact of adding sodium acetate (NaAc) into a batch culture of HEK293 cells. We monitored, as a function of time, the cell density, many external metabolites, and the supernatant concentration of the heterologous extra-cellular domain ECD-Her1 protein, a protein used to produce a candidate prostate cancer vaccine. We observed that by adding different concentrations of NaAc (0, 4, 6 and 8 mM), the production of ECD-Her1 protein increases consistently with increasing concentration, whereas the carrying capacity of the medium decreases. To understand these results we exploited a combination of experimental and computational techniques. Metabolic Flux Analysis (MFA) was used to infer intracellular metabolic fluxes from the concentration of external metabolites. Moreover, we measured independently the extracellular acidification rate and oxygen consumption rate of the cells. Both approaches support the idea that the addition of NaAc to the culture has a significant impact on the metabolism of the HEK293 cells and that, if properly tuned, enhances the productivity of the heterologous ECD-Her1 protein.

Desde los inicios de la ocupación española en el Perú en el siglo XVI y tras el proceso de transculturización, una gran variedad de muros, arcos y bóvedas se construyeron con tamaños similares a los ejecutados en la península Ibérica. Al inicio, estas obras fueron hechas con ladrillo, piedra y adobe; sin embargo, con los frecuentes sismos y terremotos que hicieron colapsar gran parte de estas edificaciones, se evidenció la falta de previsión constructiva de los alarifes españoles. Por tanto, se tuvo que recurrir a la quincha, material hecho de entramados de madera rolliza, caña, y cubierta de barro que fuera utilizado en la construcción de viviendas y centros administrativos prehispánicos. La presente investigación muestra los resultados de un trabajo de campo, descriptivo, de revisión bibliográfica completa que tuvo como objetivo demostrar el origen y evolución de las bóvedas de quincha en el Perú; la capacidad sismorresistente del material, así como la eficacia estructural que tuvo en la construcción de las bóvedas y cúpulas de las principales iglesias de Trujillo. Los resultados permiten una mayor comprensión de la arquitectura virreinal y evidencian su utilidad ancestral ante el contexto moderno, así como su estética cautivadora que permite la identificación del trujillano con su patrimonio cultural.

La urgente necesidad de desarrollar y producir vacunas seguras y efectivas para garantizar la reducción de la propagación del coronavirus de tipo 2 causante del síndrome respiratorio agudo severo, hizo que el Centro de Inmunología Molecular y el Instituto Finlay de Vacunas, desarrollaran dos vacunas y un candidato vacunal contra la COVID-19, que tienen como componente la molécula del dominio de unión al receptor (aa 319-541) del virus. Para establecer el proceso productivo, se realizaron experimentos en los posibles pasos del proceso de purificación de la molécula del dominio de unión al receptor (aa 319-541), con vistas a su posterior transferencia tecnológica a escala industrial. Dicha molécula está fusionada con una etiqueta de hexahistidina en su extremo C-terminal y presenta nueve residuos de cisteína en su secuencia que forman cuatro enlaces disulfuros intramoleculares, quedando una cisteína libre que permite obtener dos moléculas: dimérica y monomérica, antígenos que forman parte de las vacunas SOBERANA®02 y SOBERANA®Plus y el candidato vacunal SOBERANA 01. Se determinaron las mejores condiciones de adsorción de las matrices cromatográficas de afinidad por quelatos metálicos, intercambio catiónico y exclusión molecular. Se evaluó el desempeño del proceso a escala piloto y se caracterizó la molécula de acuerdo a sus propiedades físico-químicas y biológicas. Los resultados obtenidos mostraron un 60,02 ± 5,15% de recuperación total de la proteína de interés, con más del 98% de pureza en ambas moléculas, una eficiente remoción de contaminantes y una antigenicidad mayor del 90% referido al monómero control del dominio de unión al receptor con 99% de pureza, lo que demuestra que el proceso establecido es eficiente en la obtención de un producto con la calidad requerida.

The genus Swietenia includes two mahogany species, Swietenia macrophylla (King.), commonly known as Honduran mahogany, and Swietenia mahagoni (L.) Jacq, commonly known as Cuban mahogany. There are reports of morphologically intermediate forms between Cuban and Honduran mahogany that have been localized in some Caribbean islands. The main objective of this research is to distinguish morphologically intermediate forms between the parental species S. mahagoni and S. macrophylla based on leaf morphological characters. Phenotypic data from a total of 357 mahogany trees were collected in the province of Sancti Spiritus, Cuba. Rachis length, petiole length, leaflet length, leaflet width, number of leaflets and number of nerves were evaluated. Morphological descriptor analysis revealed significant differences in the morphometric variables of the evaluated leaves, with rachis length, number of leaflets, leaflet length, petiole length, leaflet width, and number of nerves being significantly higher in S. macrophylla than in S. mahagoni. ANOVA reflected the variance between all leaf morphological parameters evaluated between the two pure species with statistically significant difference. Using the function obtained in the first DC of the two species, the individuals in the mixed stands were classified into 71 morphologically intermediate forms, 45 S. macrophylla and 64 S. mahagoni. In the second DC with the two species and the morphologically intermediate forms, Wilks’ partial lambda indicates that the variable "leaflet length" with 0.67 contributed most to the overall discrimination.

Habitual consumption of highly palatable foods when not in metabolic need (HPF eating) is linked to obesity. High HPF consumption is also linked to mental health disorder (MHD) symptoms. Mindfulness-based interventions are popular treatments for obesity and MHDs, but little is known about the relationship between trait mindfulness and motive-based HPF eating. Therefore, a total of 927 young adults completed a survey that included the Palatable Eating Motives Scale-7 (which identifies Coping-, Reward enhancement-, Social-, and Conformity-eating), the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and demographic and body mass index (BMI) questions. An MHD questionnaire allowed a comparison of HPF eating between participants with and without various MHDs. Regressions revealed that Coping-eating was independently associated with lower mindfulness and also greater perceived stress, higher BMI, and female sex. Of these variables, only lower mindfulness was independently associated with Reward-, Social-, and Conformity-eating. Coping- and Reward-eating were more frequent in participants with versus without an anxiety disorder, depression, ADD/ADHD, and PTSD. Coping-eating was also more frequent in participants with body dysmorphic disorder. These findings warrant investigations in participants with clinically validated diagnoses for DSM-specific MHDs. Results from such investigations and the uncovered nature of associations between motive-specific HPF eating and trait mindfulness could provide novel targets to improve mindfulness-based interventions for obesity and MHDs.

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a large number of diseases worldwide. There are few vaccines to constrain this disease and the value of them is high. In this sense, the antigens of the vaccine platform Soberana, the receptor binding domain from SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein, both the monomeric (mRBD) and dimeric (dRBD) forms, have been developed. This study encompassed several analyses by different techniques like circular dichroism (CD), fluorescence spectroscopy (FS) and Gel Filtration- High Performance Liquid ChLC of mRBD and dRBD. Monomer and dimer exhibited similar far-UV CD spectral characteristics with 54% of β-sheet content. Similar conformational features according to near-UV CD and FS studies were observed in both RBD. Stress stability studies by far-UV CD, FS, biological activity and GF-HPLC at 37 °C showed that mRBD is very stable. On the other hand, dRBD fluorescent emission showed a shift towards higher wavelengths as the incubation time increases, suggesting exposition of tryptophan residues, unlike what happens with mRBD. Biological activity outcome confirms these results. GF-HPLC profiles showed that in mRBD, the product of molecular stress are dimers and does not increase over time. However, dRBD showed dimer fragmentation as the main degradation species. This study reveals the usefulness of CD techniques for the analysis of degradation of RBD molecules as well as showed the difference in stability of both RBD molecules. Besides, our work provides useful insights into the production of a key protein used in diagnosis and therapeutics to fight COVID-19 pandemia.

We have developed a single process for producing two key COVID-19 vaccine antigens: SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) monomer and dimer. These antigens are featured in various COVID-19 vaccine formats, including SOBERANA 01 and the licensed SOBERANA 02, and SOBERANA Plus. Our approach involves expressing RBD (319-541)-His6 in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO)-K1 cells, generating and characterizing oligoclones, and selecting the best RBD-producing clones. Critical parameters such as copper supplementation in the culture medium and cell viability influenced the yield of RBD dimer. The purification of RBD involved standard immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography (IMAC), ion exchange chromatography, and size exclusion chromatography. Our findings suggest that copper can improve IMAC performance. Efficient RBD production was achieved using small-scale bioreactor cell culture (2 L). The two RBD forms - monomeric and dimeric RBD - were also produced on a large scale (500 L). This study represents the first large-scale application of perfusion culture for the production of RBD antigens. We conducted a thorough analysis of the purified RBD antigens, which encompassed primary structure, protein integrity, N-glycosylation, size, purity, secondary and tertiary structures, isoform composition, hydrophobicity, and long-term stability. Additionally, we investigated RBD-ACE2 interactions, in vitro ACE2 recognition of RBD, and the immunogenicity of RBD antigens in mice. We have determined that both the monomeric and dimeric RBD antigens possess the necessary quality attributes for vaccine production. By enabling the customizable production of both RBD forms, this unified manufacturing process provides the required flexibility to adapt rapidly to the ever-changing demands of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and different COVID-19 vaccine platforms.

The data for provide evidences of the multi steady state of the human cell line HEK 293 was obtained from 2 L bioreactor continuous culture. A HEK 293 cell line transfected to produce soluble HER1 receptor was used. The bioreactor was operated at three different dilution rates in sequential manner. Daily samples of culture broth were collected, a total of 85 samples were processed. Viable cell concentration and culture viability was addressing by trypan blue exclusion method using a hemocytometer. Heterologous HER1 supernatant concentration was quantified by a specific ELISA and the metabolites by mass spectrometry coupled to a liquid chromatography.The primary data were collected in excel files, where it was calculated the kinetic and other variables by using mass balance and mathematical principles. It was compared the steady states behavior each other's to find out the existence of steady states’ multiplicity, taking into account the stationary phase with respect to the cell density (which means its coefficient of variation is less than 20 %).From the metabolic measurements by using Liquid Chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS), it was also built the data matrix with the specific rates of the 76 metabolites obtained. The data were processed and analyzed, using multivariate data asssnalysis (MVDA) to reduce the complexity and to find the main patterns present in the data.We describe also the full data of the metabolites not only for steady states but also in the time evolution, which could help others in terms of modeling and deep understanding of HEK293 metabolism, especially under different culture conditions.

Use of irrigation in forage production systems based on perennial C4 grasses has been limited because of inconsistent responses of biomass production to water. The effects of three different levels of irrigation on growth of Paspalum notatum (Bahia grass) and P. dilatatum (dallis grass) over two consecutive growing seasons were studied. The phenological state of the plants was inferred by the proportion of lamina and non-lamina components. While irrigation failed to increase annual dry matter yield of forage, phenological composition of forage was affected by irrigation with both species showing changes in distribution of dry matter accumulation among different above-ground plant parts. Future research on these species should study the effects of moisture deficit on phenology to better understand the effects of irrigation.

Introduction Acute radiation syndrome (ARS) is a high-risk, low-frequency diagnosis that can be fatal and is difficult to diagnose without an obvious history of ionizing radiation exposure. Methods Twenty-two emergency medicine residents and one pharmacy resident participated in an hour-long simulation session. To accommodate all learners, the simulation was conducted eight times over a block of scheduled time (two to four learners/session). Sessions included a prebriefing, pre/post questionnaires, the ARS case, and a debriefing. Learners evaluated and managed a 47-year-old male (manikin) with the hematopoietic and cutaneous subsyndromes of ARS who presented with hand pain/erythema/edema and underlying signs of infection 2 weeks after an unrecognized radiation exposure. Learners had to perform a history and physical, recognize/manage abnormal vitals, order/interpret labs, consult appropriate disciplines, and initiate supportive care. Results There was a mean reported increase in ability to recognize signs and symptoms of ARS (p < .001) and appropriately manage a patient with this condition (p = .03) even after controlling for baseline confidence in ability to make and manage uncommon diagnoses, respectively. Learners rated this simulation as a valuable learning experience, effective in teaching them how to diagnose and treat ARS, and one they would recommend to other health care professionals. Discussion This simulation aimed to teach the diagnosis and initial management of the hematopoietic and cutaneous subsyndromes of ARS. It should be used to increase awareness of the potential for ionizing radiation exposure under less obvious conditions and raise the index of suspicion for ARS in the undifferentiated patient.

Durante su vida universitaria, el estudiante de arquitectura realiza diversos trabajos manuales que son imprescindibles en su formación académica, como la elaboración de maquetas, planos e informes que, en su mayoría, son posteriormente desechados sin considerar su valorización. La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo el análisis de la gestión de los residuos sólidos generados en el Programa de estudio de Arquitectura de la Facultad de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Artes (FAUA) de la Universidad Privada Antenor Orrego (UPAO), considerando los principios de las 5R y la cultura de reciclaje que los alumnos poseen. Para ello, primero se caracterizaron los residuos producidos según su tiempo de vida y toxicidad. Luego se aplicaron 218 encuestas a alumnos escogidos bajo muestreo probabilístico aleatorio simple con el fin de conocer sus hábitos ecológicos y su predisposición para el reciclaje, logrando una estimación de la cantidad de materiales utilizados y desechados durante el ciclo académico; asimismo, se realizó una entrevista a la directiva para tener conocimiento de la gestión actual. Finalmente, se propuso un plan integral de residuos para la Facultad, que incluyó la implementación de un área de reciclaje dentro del pabellón, el cual permitirá organizar adecuadamente los residuos sólidos promoviendo una cultura ambiental en el estudiante, plana docente y administrativa; todo con el fin de llevar a la práctica el respeto por el medio ambiente, en pro de una mejora en la utilización de recursos y valorización de residuos, contribuyendo así a la huella ecológica.

El presente estudio tiene por objetivo determinar la necesidad de incorporar una perspectiva de género en la política de perfeccionamiento doctoral de la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas de la Universidad de Antofagasta. Para tal efecto, se estudió la situación de las mujeres en la academia a nivel general, pudiendo evidenciar que existe una brecha de género en las universidades a nivel mundial. Bajo dicho contexto, se delimitó el objetivo de esta investigación en el proceso de selección del profesorado de la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas para proseguir programas de doctorado. Se constató que la Universidad de Antofagasta desde sus primeros planes de desarrollo declaró como una de sus fortalezas contar con académicos/as doctores/as, fijando estrategias, objetivos e indicadores para incrementarlos, y reguló, a contar del 2002, el acceso a los estudios de postgrado, fijando el proceso y criterios de selección de los académico/as. Dado ello, se revisó la implementación de la política de perfeccionamiento doctoral en el Departamento de Derecho y en la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas, constatándose que no existe un enfoque de género en la selección de los académicos/as que han proseguido estudios doctorales, al ser sólo varones los beneficiados, por lo que se propone como mecanismo para disminuir dicha brecha la incorporación de la perspectiva de género en la política de perfeccionamiento de dichas unidades académicas.

El diseño e implementación de sistemas informáticos para las organizaciones deben basarse en las políticas y reglas del negocio. Hoy día se considera ventajoso aplicar el enfoque de reglas de negocio en el desarrollo de sistemas de información, y de esta manera garantizar la inserción y modificación de las reglas de manera automática. Una de las formas para implementar un sistema de información usando reglas de negocio, es a través del tipo de herramienta independiente de los gestores de datos, pero que genera recursos de bases de datos. Ante la necesidad de desarrollar un sistema de información transaccional para la gestión de menús de comedores en la UCLV, se hizo necesaria una aplicación cuya interfaz de entrada realice las operaciones de inserción y actualización en una base de datos. La existencia de un conjunto de reglas de negocio que deben ser chequeadas al realizar estas operaciones, hace posible la utilización de la herramienta LPT SQL con vistas a disminuir el esfuerzo de programación al insertar el código, que garantiza el cumplimiento de las reglas, y su posible modificación independientemente de la interfaz de usuario.

The current research was carried out with the aim of diagnosing the situation of the urban trees in a section of Sancti Spíritus city. For this, an area of 25.39 ha was selected, where three plots were established, in which the inventory and classification of tree species in terms of taxonomy, origin, uses, type of location, state of development and phytosanitary was carried out, unrest problems were identified, and the volume of wood from those in the state of high trunk development was also estimated. In the studied section, 1 522 trees were counted, belonging to 59 species, 55 genera and 32 families, of which Fabaceae and Meliaceae were the best represented with 10 and 8 species respectively. Casuarina equisetifolia L. and Hibiscus elatus Sw. specified the largest number of individuals with more than 200 in each case. Timber species predominate (55.93%), of which 722 examples are in high trunk development state, with an estimated volume of wood of 711.280 m3 in general. 62.71% of the counted individuals are evergreen, and 49.16% correspond to autochthons species. Trees in groups predominate (63.4%); 85.28% have a good phytosanitary status while 61.76% need some type of silvicultural care. The main problems identified were location of trees in compact soils; damage to infrastructures caused by root systems and proximity to electrical and telephone wiring. Finally, some measures are proposed to contribute to the improvement of the identified problems.

Tuberculosis (TB) is the major cause of death from infectious diseases around the world, particularly in HIV infected individuals. TB vaccine design and development have been focused on improving Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) and evaluating recombinant and viral vector expressed Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) proteins, for boosting BCG-primed immunity, but these approaches have not yet yielded significant improvements over the modest effects of BCG in protecting against infection or disease. On March 7-8, 2016, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) convened a workshop on "The Impact of Mtb Immune Evasion on Protective Immunity: Implications for TB Vaccine Design" with the goal of defining immune mechanisms that could be targeted through novel research approaches, to inform vaccine design and immune therapeutic interventions for prevention of TB. The workshop addressed early infection events, the impact of Mtb evolution on the development and maintenance of an adaptive immune response, and the factors that influence protection against and progression to active disease. Scientific gaps and areas of study to revitalize and accelerate TB vaccine design were discussed and prioritized. These included a comprehensive evaluation of innate and Mtb-specific adaptive immune responses in the lung at different stages of disease; determining the role of B cells and antibodies (Abs) during Mtb infection; development of better assays to measure Mtb burden following exposure, infection, during latency and after treatment, and approaches to improving current animal models to study Mtb immunogenicity, TB disease and transmission.

Abstract The high prices of biopharmaceuticals or biologics used in the treatment of many diseases limit the access of patients to these novel therapies. One example is the monoclonal antibody trastuzumab, successfully used for breast cancer treatment. An economic alternative is the generation of biosimilars to these expensive biopharmaceuticals. Since antibody therapies may require large doses over a long period of time, robust platforms and strategies for cell line development are essential for the generation of recombinant cell lines with higher levels of expression. Here, we obtained trastuzumab-expressing CHO-K1 cells through a screening and selection strategy that combined the use of host cells pre-adapted to protein-free media and suspension culture and lentiviral vectors. The results demonstrated that the early screening strategy obtained recombinant CHO-K1 cell populations with higher enrichment of IgG-expressing cells. Moreover, the measurement of intracellular heavy chain polypeptide by flow cytometry was a useful metric to characterize the homogeneity of cell population, and our results suggest this could be used to predict the expression levels of monoclonal antibodies in early stages of cell line development. Additionally, we propose an approach using 25 cm2 T-flasks in suspension and shaking culture conditions as a screening tool to identify high producing cell lines. Finally, trastuzumab-expressing CHO-K1 clones were generated and characterized by batch culture, and preliminary results related to HER2-recognition capacity were successful. Further optimization of elements such as gene optimization, vector selection, type of amplification/selection system, cell culture media composition, in combination with this strategy will allow obtaining high producing clones.

Las pasturas anuales de invierno son componentes estratégicos de los sistemas agropecuarios en Uruguay. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar el efecto de la fijación biológica de N de leguminosas en una mezcla con raigrás anual en contraste con la adición de fertilizante nitrogenado. El diseño experimental fue un diseño de bloques completos al azar con arreglo factorial 2 x 2 de los tratamientos, con dos tipos de pasturas: a) pastura de raigrás anual (Lolium multiflorum L.), y b) pastura mezcla de raigrás anual con dos especies de leguminosas anuales (Trifolium resupinatum L. y Trifolium vesiculosum L.); y dos niveles de fertilización con N: a) sin fertilizante, y b) 64 kg N ha-1. Las pasturas fueron pastoreadas con novillos Holstein. En verano se realizó un cultivo de Setaria italica para evaluar los efectos de los tratamientos en la producción de biomasa de este. La biomasa acumulada de las pasturas de invierno incrementó significativamente con fertilización de N (P ≤ 0.01), con un incremento de 1277 ± 322.5 kg MS ha-1. La pastura mezcla fertilizada con N produjo un mayor índice de nutrición nitrogenada que la pastura de raigrás anual. La biomasa aérea de raigrás presentó un incremento con el agregado de N; sin embargo, en las pasturas monofíticas de raigrás hubo un aumento del 47% de malezas. La ganancia media diaria de los novillos incrementó con la incorporación de leguminosas, con un promedio en las pasturas mezclas de 1,01 kg PV día-1. La adición de fertilizante nitrogenado permitió una mayor carga animal y una mayor producción animal en invierno. No se encontró un efecto de los tratamientos en la biomasa acumulada de S. italica. La incorporación de leguminosas al raigrás anual permitió una mayor ganancia diaria de peso vivo por animal, pero no produjo un efecto adicional sobre el cultivo sucesor de verano.

In order to evaluate the effect of the bionutrient FitoMas-E on the seed germination and plant quality of Chrysophyllum cainito L. (caimito), two experiments were designed, completely at random, in a rustic nursery in the mountainous town of Topes de Collantes. In the experiment, related to the germination, five treatments were applied: immersion in water, mechanical scarification, scarification with sulfuric acid, immersion in solution of PhytoMas-E at 3 % and a control; while in the experiment related to the quality of plants four treatments were established consisting of foliar application of the bionutrient in solutions of different concentrations. In both cases three replicates were established. The variables evaluated were: accumulated and total germination up to 50 days, as well as the main attributes and morphological indexes of the plants at 150 days. The data obtained were subjected to simple ANOVA and comparison of means through Duncan's multiple range test (p≤0,05). The main results showed the effectiveness of PhytoMas-E in both processes, with an increase in the total germination of the seeds and advance in the beginning of it. In all treatments with the bionutrient, good quality representative values were observed in terms of attributes and morphological indexes, with statistically significant differences with respect to the control; the best results were obtained with the 2 % solution.

Se expresaron los objetivos de un proyecto de orientación vocacional de gran importancia para las ciencias básicas, se propusieron acciones para incidir en la orientación vocacional hacia la Carrera de Matemática y se describieron actividades para concretar las acciones en las dimensiones curricular y extracurricular. Para la evaluación del proyecto, se tomaron en consideración diversos factores como son los riesgos, la incidencia del trabajo docente educativo realizado por la UCLV y la evaluación formal de los aspectos propuestos por el proyecto. Se mostraron procedimientos para la evaluación de los riesgos asumidos y para la evaluación del riesgo más significativo que utilizan técnicas de la Lógica Difusa. También la evaluación de la incidencia del trabajo docente educativo realizado por la UCLV fue realizada aplicando una técnica basada en la implicación difusa. Se explica por último cómo considerar los aspectos formales de la evaluación del proyecto.

Many of the studies in Campos grasslands focus on management aspects such as the control of herbage allowance, and application of nutrients and/or overseeding with legumes. However, there is little literature on how the Campos grassland resource is utilised, especially regarding the grazing pattern and the relationship between pasture quantity and quality on daily grazing activities. The study of the ingestive behaviour in species-rich and heterogeneous native grasslands during daylight hours, and understanding how animals prioritise quality or quantity of intake in relation to pasture attributes, are important to comprehend the ingestive-digestive processes modulating the energy intake of animals and to achieve a better grazing management. Therefore, the objective was to describe and quantify the daily grazing behaviour of growing cattle grazing native pasture with different structures as a result of different management practices, and study the relationship of pasture attributes and intake through multivariate analysis. The study was carried out at the Faculty of Agronomy, Paysandú, Uruguay. Treatments were native grassland, overseeding with Trifolium pratense and Lotus tenuis + phosphorus, and native pasture + nitrogen-phosphorus. Grazing activities were discriminated into grazing, searching (defined when animals take 1–2 bites in one feeding station and then change to another feeding station and so on), ruminating and idling. The probability of time allocated to each activity was continuously measured during daylight hours (0700–1930) and was related to pasture structure and forage quality using regression tree models, while the bite rate was determined every 2 h. The diurnal pattern of growing cattle showed grazing and searching sessions, followed by ruminating and idling sessions. The length of sessions (as the probability of time allocated to each activity) varied throughout the day. The grazing probability was greater during afternoon than morning and midday (0.74 vs 0.45 vs 0.46, respectively), and it was associated with higher bite rate (34.2 bites/min). Regression tree models showed different grazing, searching and ruminating strategies according to pasture attributes. During the morning, animals modified grazing, searching, ruminating and idling strategies according to bite rate, crude protein in diet and herbage allowance. At midday, they only adjusted ruminating and idling, while during afternoon sessions, grazing activities were modified by pasture quantity attributes such as herbage mass and herbage allowance. By controlling the herbage allowance, herbage mass and pasture height, animals prioritise quality in the morning and quantity in the afternoon, integrating and modifying the grazing-searching and ruminating-idling pattern.

Este trabajo se propuso brindar una pauta metodológica para utilizar las técnicas de la lógica difusa en la gestión de proyectos. Primeramente, se introdujeron las nociones básicas sobre las cuales se fundamenta la lógica difusa requerida. Se focalizaron tres aspectos correspondientes al manejo de proyectos donde es posible aplicar la Lógica Difusa para evaluar con más objetividad su significación y alcance: el manejo de índices que justifican la racionalidad de la inversión, de manera que se puedan medir beneficios económicos; la determinación de una jerarquía de riesgos con vista a tomarlos en consideración para minimizar su impacto y la toma de decisión en un ambiente en el que confluyen factores tanto objetivos como subjetivos. Luego, fueron explicadas técnicas de la lógica difusa correspondientes: la utilización del VAN difuso, el análisis jerárquico de alternativas y la toma de decisión mediante un cierto consenso. Se discutieron las especificidades de tres problemas,....

Este trabajo realiza un análisis sobre las narraciones que las personas mayores realizan sobre el erotismo y la sexualidad con el objetivo de presentar las alternativas que encuentran los adultos mayores en sus formas de gozar y desear y el modo en que construyen esos relatos. Los datos se obtuvieron mediante la realización de entrevistas semi estructuradas a 40 adultos mayores de los cuales 28 fueron mujeres de entre 65 y 86 años y 12 fueron hombres de entre 70 y 90 años. Se encontró que el erotismo en las personas mayores aparece como un mecanismo ineludible que pareciera anudar el impulso sexual, la erótica de época y los modos singulares de construir significado a lo largo de las trayectorias personales. Aunque aparece en el relato una referencia a los límites tanto físicos como sociales, los sujetos dan cuenta de su capacidad de transformar el deseo y el goce en formas alternativas que posibilitan compensaciones, reemplazos y el redescubrimiento de recursos.

Bach Xuan Tran,1–3 Victoria L Boggiano,4 Long Hoang Nguyen,5 Carl A Latkin,2 Huong Lan Thi Nguyen,6 Tung Thanh Tran,6 Huong Thi Le,1 Thuc Thi Minh Vu,7 Cyrus SH Ho,8 Roger CM Ho9 1Institute for Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam; 2Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA; 3Vietnam Young Physicians Association, Hanoi, Vietnam; 4Berkeley School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA; 5Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 6Institute for Global Health Innovations, Duy Tan University, Da Nang, Vietnam; 7Department of Immunology and Allergy, National Otolaryngology Hospital, Hanoi, Vietnam; 8Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Health System, Singapore; 9Department of Psychological Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore Background: Media representation of vaccine side effects impacts the success of immunization programs globally. Exposure to the media can cause individuals to feel hesitant toward, or even refuse, vaccines. This study aimed to explore the impact of the media on beliefs and behaviors regarding vaccines and vaccine side effects in an urban clinic in Vietnam.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in an urban vaccination clinic in Hanoi, Vietnam from November 2015 to March 2016. The primary outcomes of this study were the decisions of Vietnamese subjects after hearing about adverse effects of immunizations (AEFIs) in the media. Socio-demographic characteristics as well as beliefs regarding vaccination were also investigated. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with subjects’ behaviors regarding vaccines.Results: Among 429 subjects, 68.2% of them said they would be hesitant about receiving vaccines after hearing about AEFIs, while 12.4% of subjects said they would refuse vaccines altogether after hearing about AEFIs. Wealthy individuals (OR=0.41; 95% CI=0.19–0.88), and those who displayed trust in government-distributed vaccines (OR=0.20; 95% CI=0.06–0.72) were less likely to display hesitancy regarding vaccination. Receiving information from community health workers (OR=0.44; 95% CI=0.20–0.99) and their relatives, colleagues, and friends (OR=0.47; 95% CI=0.25–0.88) was negatively associated with vaccine hesitancy, but facilitated vaccine refusal after reading about AEFIs in the media (OR=3.12; 95% CI=1.10–8.90 and OR=3.75; 95% CI=1.56–9.02, respectively).Conclusion: Our results reveal a significantly high rate of vaccine hesitancy and refusal among subjects living in an urban setting in Vietnam, after hearing about AEFIs in the media. Vietnam needs to develop accurate information systems in the media about immunizations, to foster increased trust between individuals, health care professionals, and the Vietnamese government. Keywords: vaccination, Vietnam, media, mass media, health literacy

Considering the permanent human need to meet the food demands, current efforts are being made to diversify crop productions and foster multipurpose crops. Accordingly, a study was made in Topes de Collantes mountain community, where there is a predominance of farms under agroecological conversion. The aim of this research was to evaluate the morphological and productive indicators of three sunflower varieties for introduction in local agro-forest-grazing systems. The varieties studied were Cubasol 113, Caburé 15, and CIAP JE 94. The treatments for seed germination were dipped in water for 6, 12, and 24 h. The various phenological phases of the crop were determined in the field. Additionally, growth indicators like height, stem thickness, and number of leaves were evaluated; as well as productive indicators capitulum diameter, number of seeds per capitulum, and total seed weight, from which the yields of the three varieties were estimated. Multifactorial and one-way ANOVA analyses were performed for statistical processing. The best treatment was the 12 h dipping, and the best variety was Cubasol 113, with over 70% germination. The height, stem thickness, and leaf number values for the three varieties matched the responses described for them under other edaphoclimatic conditions. The productive values of variety CIAP JE 94 were higher than the values for Cubasol 113 and Caburé 15 under the conditions of the study.

Teniendo en cuenta la necesidad permanente que presenta la humanidad de satisfacer la demanda de alimentos, se aboga actualmente por la diversificación de las producciones, así como la utilización de cultivos multipropósito. Con base en esto, se presentan los resultados de una investigación realizada en la localidad montañosa Topes de Collantes donde predominan las fincas en conversión agroecológica. El propósito fue evaluar indicadores morfológicos y productivos de tres variedades de girasol para su introducción en los sistemas agrosilvopastoriles existentes en la zona. Las variedades testadas fueron Cubasol 113, Caburé 15 y CIAP JE 94. Los tratamientos para la germinación de las semillas consistieron en imbibición en agua durante períodos de 6, 12 y 24h. Se determinaron las distintas fases fenológicas del cultivo en campo bajo las condiciones de la localidad, se evaluaron además indicadores de crecimiento como altura, grosor del tallo y número de hojas, así como indicadores productivos como diámetro del capítulo, número de semillas por capítulo, peso total de semillas; y a partir de esta última medición se estimó el rendimiento de las tres variedades. Para el procesamiento estadístico de los datos obtenidos se realizaron análisis multifactorial y ANOVA simple. El mejor tratamiento fue la imbibición durante 12h y la mejor variedad fue la Cubasol 113 con más de 70% de germinación. Las tres variedades mostraron valores de altura, grosor del tallo y número de hojas acorde con las características descritas para éstas en otras condiciones edafoclimáticas. Los resultados productivos de la variedad CIAP JE 94 fueron superiores a los obtenidos por la Cubasol 113 y Caburé 15 en las condiciones de estudio.

Christianne E Strang, Mary Katherine Ray, Mary M Boggiano, Franklin R Amthor Department of Psychology, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA Purpose: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been studied in humans for its effects on enhancement of learning, amelioration of psychiatric disorders, and modification of other behaviors for over 50 years. Typical treatments involve injecting 2 mA current through scalp electrodes for 20 minutes, sometimes repeated weekly for two to five sessions. Little is known about the direct effects of tDCS at the neural circuit or the cellular level. This study assessed the effects of tDCS-like currents on the central nervous system by recording effects on retinal ganglion cell responsiveness using the rabbit retina eyecup preparation. Materials and methods: We examined changes in firing to On and Off light stimuli during and after brief applications of a range of currents and polarity and in different classes of ganglion cells. Results: The responses of Sustained cells were consistently suppressed during the first round of current application, but responses could be enhanced after subsequent rounds of stimulation. The observed first round suppression was independent of current polarity, amplitude, or number of trials. However, the light responses of Transient cells were more likely to be enhanced by negative currents and unaffected or suppressed by first round positive currents. Short-duration currents, that is, minutes, as low as 2.5 µA produced a remarkable persistency of firing changes, for up to 1.5 hours, after cessation of current. Conclusion: The results are consistent with postulated tDCS alteration of central nervous system function, which outlast the tDCS session and provide evidence for the isolated retina as a useful model to understand tDCS actions at the neuronal level. Keywords: tDCS mechanisms, CNS, in vitro model, neural coding, neuromodulation

Abstract Background Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) improves patients’ ability to access HIV-related services and reduces needle sharing and other risky HIV-related behaviors. However, patients may continue to engage in risky sexual practices. In this study, we evaluate sexual behaviors of MMT patients in a mountainous province in Northern Vietnam. Methods We explored the health status, MMT and substance use history, and sexual practices of 241 male MMT patients in Tuyen Quang province. Health status was investigated using the EuroQOL-5 Dimensions-5 Levels (EQ-5D-5 L). Multivariate logistic regression was employed to assess associated factors. Results Most patients (66.4%) reported having at least one sexual partner within the previous twelve months. Most of these partners were spouses or primary partners (72.6%). About 8.3% of patients had casual partners, and 5.8% had visited sex workers; of those who engaged in casual sexual relationships, 90.9% reported using condoms. Current drug use and living in a remote area were associated with an increased odd of having two or more sexual partners, while anxiety or depression was associated with lower odds. Conclusion This study highlights a low proportion of having sexual risk behaviors among MMT patients in Vietnamese mountainous settings. Integrating education about safe sexual practices into MMT services, along with providing medical care and ensuring methadone treatment adherence, is an important component in HIV risk reduction for these patients who were at risk of unsafe sexual practices.

Abstract Background Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) patients face unique costs associated with their healthcare expenditures. As such, it is important that these patients have access to health insurance (HI) to help them pay for both routine and unforeseen health services. In this study, we explored factors related to health insurance enrollment and utilization among MMT patients, to move Vietnam closer to universal coverage among this patient population. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1003 patients enrolled in MMT in five clinics in Hanoi and Nam Dinh provinces. Patients were asked a range of questions about their health, health expenditures, and health insurance access and utilization. We used multivariate logistic regressions to determine factors associated with health insurance access among participants. Results The majority of participants (nearly 80%) were not currently enrolled in health insurance at the time of the study. Participants from rural regions were significantly more likely than urban participants to report difficulty using HI. Family members of participants from rural regions were more likely to have overall poor service quality through health insurance compared with family members of participants from urban regions. Overall, 37% of participants endorsed a lack of information about HI, nearly 22% of participants reported difficulty accessing HI, 22% reported difficulty using HI, and more than 20% stated they had trouble paying for HI. Older, more highly educated, and employed participants were more likely to have an easier time accessing HI than their younger, less well educated, and unemployed counterparts. HIV-positive participants were more likely to have sufficient information about health insurance options. Conclusions Our study highlights the dearth of health insurance utilization among MMT patients in northern Vietnam. It also sheds light on factors associated with increased access to and utilization of health insurance among this underserved population. These results can help improve health insurance enrollment among MMT patients, a population that is at increased need of financial assistance in accessing health services.