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This article presents the results of the first phase of the project "Design, development and evaluation of an App to promote the development of Intercultural Competence and ICT Competence in teachers of Higher Education" that was carried out in the Department of Antioquia in Colombia. The main objective of the first phase of the study was to analyze the perceptions of higher education teachers about their Intercultural Competence "Culturally Appropriate Pedagogical Strategies" in Virtual Learning Environments. The study has a quantitative approach, with a descriptive and non-experimental design that allows observing and analyzing the phenomena of the study. To identify participants' perceptions, a survey was conducted in which 69 teachers from various educational institutions in the Department of Antioquia in Colombia participated voluntarily.

Researching interculturality can be a complex task because of the multiple angles to consider in the context of English teacher education programs. This article aims to analyse the experiences of five Colombian EFL student teachers who participated as assistants in a cross-cultural and cross-national research project. Information was gathered from research group conversations and reflections written by the EFL student teachers around their work within the research. The data analysis showed that the EFL student teachers' participation in the research project contributed to giving a new significance to their understanding of the concept of interculturality and being intercultural. In the same way, they had the chance to demystify some ideologies learned during their major. And lastly, EFL student teachers renewed their attitude toward the intercultural research process. Finally, it is concluded that the active participation of EFL student teachers in research aimed at promoting interculturality contributed to their understanding of interculturality within their professional practice.

This paper proposes a model that comprises a learning exercise based on challenges, which tends to promote non-technical skills such as oral expression, communication, resource management, leadership and problem solving among engineering students. Since engineers have been recognized throughout the world for their ability to creatively solve problems, using the technical knowledge developed in their professional career, it has been considered that these skills make it easier for them to reach results that involve the solution of mathematical problems, or those related to science, through the use of technical skills, research or analysis and synthesis. In this sense, the academia seems to have placed the emphasis on hard and technical skills, while, non-technical ones, have been left in a secondary stage in the case of engineers, ignoring their role on their professional development. This project proposes a model that will bring together more than 180 engineering students and 4 university professors, by involving them in a real challenge that they might solve by means of their technical and non-technical skills. The model is being applied at a university and their first results show the need to modify the engineering training processes, to include the development of appropriate competences in engineers, in response to the demands of a globalized world.

The promotion of Intercultural Competence (IC) in English Teaching has been an area of extensive study and advocacy at a global level; however, in the Colombian context, this initiative is in its first stages. This article reports results from a first phase of a mixed research study carried out within the framework of the Doctorate in Education at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, which aims to explore and identify the intercultural profile of a group of English professors working at eight public universities in Colombia. In the first stage, a quantitative survey study was developed, based on the results of a questionnaire that was answered anonymously and voluntarily by 70 English teachers. After examining the questionnaire, one of the most interesting results was the significant difference between the beliefs of professors with and without postgraduate studies. This mirrors the fact that a high number of these educators understand promotion of intercultural competence merely as content transmission, ignoring the development of skills and attitudes. Whatsmore, it is evident that a large percentage of these professors filter cultural topics for the class and approach them in a personal and anecdotal way. On the other hand, there is a marked concern amongst the population about the need for promoting cultural relativism in students, both in order to recognize their own identity and accept otherness.

This article is the product of a diagnostic research study conducted by two professors from the APRENAP research group at Universidad Surcolombiana from Neiva, Huila, Colombia. The study aimed at looking into the causes for the English courses repetition phenomenon which was evident among many students especially in the advanced semesters at the ELT undergraduate program in the university. The main purpose of this qualitative study that followed the Grounded Theory principles was to determine to which factors the academic community of the program--professors and students--attributed the constant failure and repetition of advanced English courses by some students. Findings gathered from the analysis of a questionnaire and a semi-structured interview evidenced that variables such as a lack of autonomous learning habits, economic, labor and family responsibilities, and few hours of class, among others, affect negatively students' foreign language learning.

This paper shares the results of a small-scale research project focused on using technology to motivate the use of English. Tenth semester students from a University in Tunja was the target group to develop the project. It also had as an objective to promote a virtual learning environment to boost English as a foreign language. A field diary, an online forum, a survey, and students' artifacts were used to gather information in this action research study. Findings revealed two categories, firstly, "Collaborative work to instill motivation" which explains why students tend to work better while working in groups and secondly "The use of technology to enhance language learning" where it is described how the use of technology makes students more confident to learn English.

This article explores why certain types of conversations are effective to develop disciplinary knowledge during video game play while others are not. In particular, we analyze conversations among students playing an educational video game that focuses on the process of viral replication. To do so, we use an emergent qualitative coding strategy. In this process, we identify three different types of conversational patterns: general, content and situated conversations. General conversations are not related to biology or other class topic. Content conversations are related to class content, but they do not involve the different sources of information available for students. Situated conversations delve into disciplinary knowledge by connecting gameplay with the information available in the educational materials. Situated conversations support the development of disciplinary knowledge by presenting the symbolic devices of the domain and bringing expert knowledge to the learning situation.

Virtual education faces tremendous challenges such as lack of motivation and high dropout rates. However, one solution to this problem is the incorporation of digital pedagogical strategies based on gamification, which promote interest, facilitate the learning process, and contribute to reducing dropout. In this sense, we evaluated the student's preference for using the gamified tool "Didactic City," by using a quantitative methodology and structural equation models. This preference included fundamental factors such as utility, knowledge, engagement, enjoyment, motivation, and ease of use. The results are expected to contribute to create a more informed decision-making process not only for video game designers but also for pedagogues, and educational managers who could perform game improvements, redesigns, inclusion, or exclusion of individual elements that would make students prefer to use gamification tools in the future. The results indicate that the students' utility, the enjoyment generated by the tool, and the improvement of knowledge are the critical factors in terms of preference for using gamified tools in virtual learning environments. Implications for policy and practice: (1) In virtual learning environments, higher education institutions and instructors can include gamified tools to create pleasant environments that increase students' motivation and facilitate learning; (2) Designers and developers of gamified educational tools should measure their acceptance, as this factor is decisive for fulfilling the purposes of these pedagogical tools; (3) Researchers could evidence more factors that influence the preference for the use of gamified educational tools.

This study presents some of the results of the project "Training and Development of Intercultural Competency of Teachers in Virtual Environments", carried out in ten Colombian Caribbean higher education institutions (HEI) offering virtual programs. It was performed in three steps: 1-diagnosis, 2-training, and 3-analysis of the pedagogical practice. The article shows third-stage results of six cases corresponding to teachers who had participated in the two previous stages selected. The study used a qualitative approach based on a cooperative action research design. The stage here reported aimed at analyzing and assessing virtual teachers' practice in virtual learning environments. Data were collected from each case's Virtual Learning Environment, and they were analyzed by using documentary analysis of the teacher's pedagogical practice. This analysis was performed by the participant teachers, the researcher, and an external expert. Results show a changing process of intercultural conception both in the design and in the implementation and evaluation. In order to overcome some weaknesses observed, it is necessary to train the teachers not only in the intercultural education but also in topics such as curricular design and educational technology.

Aim/Purpose: This study aimed at recognizing and analyzing the trends of ICT use (hardware, software, and digital educational resources) by higher education professors in the Antioquia region (Colombia), and characterizing this population according to their context. Background: The inexorable growth of ICT and the convergence of networks have produced great changes in human culture, and particularly in the educational environment. As a result, the development of appropriate technological competencies and the study of the trends of ICT use to meet this requirement become necessary. Methodology: The study follows a quantitative approach, with a non-experimental and correlational design. The sample consisted of 97 professors from different universities of the Antioquia region (Colombia), age between 21 and 60 years old, selected in a non-aleatory way, to fill in an online survey. Contribution: A contribution is the identification and characterizing of an active population in higher education and the trends in use of digital resources in the classroom from the professors' perception that allows recognizing the pedagogical potential of these resources to enrich the process of social and educational appropriation of ICT in higher education institutions (HEI). Findings: Findings show the level of use (low and high) of ICT (hardware, software, and digital educational resources) by university professors, identifying those that still maintain a predominant use (e.g., desktop PC); those that are innovative (e.g., laptop, smartphone), and those that appear with low frequency (e.g., apps, digital blackboard, clickers). These results show some factors that may influence the development of these trends, such as technological infrastructure, HEI support, teachers' training, the accessibility and availability of resources, and preference for digital open resources. Recommendations for Practitioners: According to the results, universities should provide technological resources and suitable connectivity necessary for educational innovation to professors. Besides, it is suggested to strengthen the pedagogical use of ICT by training according to the trends of use and professors' competency levels. Recommendation for Researchers: This study made evident professors' great preference of using storage, display, and sound devices, among them the desktop PC and the laptop continue being the key tools to boost the educational process, in contrast to the low use of tools to detect plagiarism, social networks, and apps to boost activities with emergent technologies. Considering the potential and richness these tools may offer in the educational processes, it should be interesting to carry out studies on factors or motivations that influence the little inclination to use them. Impact on Society: The analysis of the trends of ICT use from the perspective of university professors about hardware, software, and digital educational resources may suggest greater attention to the permanent training to take advantage of the pedagogical and technological potential of these tools. Future Research: This study allows thinking of other ways and lines of research that are the base to develop future proposals exploring the reality of new generations of professors. It also could be the base to carry out comparative studies in other regional contexts, which permit to compare, contrast and enrich professors' diversity. On the other hand, this research also shows the importance of carrying out mixed studies that offer a greater level of comprehension, analysis, and reflection about the target population and the trends of use of ICT.

The new paradigms of university social responsibility (USR) conceive students as key players who express their beliefs, attitudes and opinions both in the professional training process and in their willingness to serve the community in line with the agenda of USR. This research focuses on a comparative study of the social representations that students of two higher education institutions have on the concept of USR. From a qualitative methodological perspective, using focus groups and semi-structured interviews as the information collection technique, the narratives of 50 participants were analysed by codifying and prioritizing the categories in accordance with the assumptions of the central core theory for the study of social representations. The results show that the central core of the representation focuses on prosocial sense. The peripheral elements are associated with social awareness, mutual respect, co-responsibility, social projection, university identity, and comprehensive education and entrepreneurship, among others.

Public significance statement Political polarization on social media, particularly during electoral campaigns, has become a growing concern. This study aimed to assess levels of affective polarization in political communication, considering temporal orientation, delegitimizing beliefs, and intergroup emotions. Two studies were conducted: one during the Andalusian elections in Spain, and another during the Colombian presidential campaign. Tweets from candidates and X users were analyzed in both studies. Linguistic analysis was used to develop an index for measuring affective polarization in linguistic pieces. This index offers an alternative to the lack of linguistic measurement tools for psychological processes regarding political polarization. Findings showed that communicative strategies often exhibited high indicators of ingroup bias in contexts without political violence, resulting in lower polarization that increased with positive emotions and a forward‐looking perspective. Conversely, in contexts of political violence, strategies shifted towards outgroup discrimination and delegitimization. Positive emotions decreased polarization in these situations, while a past focus intensified it. The study concluded that affective polarization could indicate the willingness to pursue reconciliation in violent contexts. Consequently, this research provides a map of emotions associated with polarization.Two studies conducted in Spain and Colombia analyzed how political figures and users of the social network X communicate during elections. It was identified that the use of emotions can contribute to political polarization in both populations. Positive emotions can exacerbate polarization by glorifying one's group, while negative emotions can fuel polarization through attacks on opponents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of A&C - Administrative & Constitutional Law Review - Revista de Direito Administrativo e Constitucional is the property of A&C - Revista de Direito Administrativo & Constitucional (Instituto Bacellar) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Encuentros is the property of Universidad Autonoma del Caribe and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The native savanna ecosystem of the Orinoquia region is the habitat of 50% of the wild ungulate species reported for Colombia. Over the last 20 years, this high species diversity has been strongly threatened by the human transformation of the natural land cover causing connectivity loss of the habitats. The Orinoquia region lacks a biological connectivity analysis with a multi-species approach involving species groups that are representative of the savanna ecosystem such as the ungulates. Understanding the spatial distributions of suitable areas and the main habitats that act as primary habitats for ungulate species in these landscapes is fundamental for the design of conservation strategies. We use an occurrence dataset for lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari) in the development of species' potential distribution models, binarization process, and morphological spatial pattern analysis. This information was used for the modeling of dispersal corridors connecting the core habitats of the ungulate focal species using the randomized shortest path algorithm and quantifying the weighted global connectivity metrics. Our results suggest an integral corridor with potential least-cost dispersal routes between the native savanna landscape on the middle basins of the savanna rivers and the Meta River. These areas associated with the fluvial dendritic systems are connected, while the core habitats in the eastern part of the savanna landscape are disconnected. We discuss how the application of such knowledge on the spatial ecology of ungulate focal species might improve the management of the metapopulations in the Orinoquia region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writing as a means of communication is one of the basic skills students must master at the university level. Although it is not an easy task because students are usually reluctant to correct, teachers have great responsibility at the time of guiding a writing process. For that reason, this study aimed at improving the writing process in fourth semester students from the Engineering Faculty at the Universidad Santo Tomás, Tunja, Colombia, following the writing stages. Data analysis showed that writing improves if students can follow stages and receive feedback from the teacher.

Genetically modified (GM) crops have been on the market for almost 27 years and since the beginning have been protected by intellectual property (IP) rights that restrict their use and commercialization by third parties. In addition, their development is typically associated with elevated costs, making their production by public research institutions extremely difficult, especially in developing countries. Nevertheless, many patents for the first generation of GM crops have already expired, and others will do so soon, opening the path to generic GM crops. Using technologies in the public domain makes it possible to deliver GM seeds adapted to the local environment at affordable prices. This paper describes the development of the first Latin American off-patent GM corn and discusses the relevant IP and regulatory issues that allowed its commercial release in Colombia. The approach exposed here can be utilized for other crops or characteristics of agronomic interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In evolutionary studies of human populations based on the Y chromosome, the majority of Native Americans belong to the QM3 lineage. Therefore, to study the history of groups inhabiting northern South America, it is necessary to have a higher resolution of the tree. The objective of this work was to identify new SNPs of the QM3 lineage that would allow the evaluation of the phylogenetic relationships between Andean and Amazonian populations of Colombia. Sequences previously obtained from two Y chromosomes of Amazonian populations were used, from which 13 potential SNPs were selected and typed in 171 Amazonian samples from the Vaupés region and in 60 samples from the Pasto, Nasa, Embera, Arhuaco and Kogüi ethnic groups of the Andean region. In addition, the main SNPs/markers (L56, L54, M346, M848, Z780, CTS11780) defining autochthonous Q lineages were typed, along with others defined by different SNPs/markers as reported in the literature (CTS11357, SA05, Z19319, Z5915, and Z19384). It was found that all the new SNPs are present in the Amazonian samples and only 2 of them are shared with the Embera, Nasa and Pasto, but none with the Kogüi and Arhuaco from the northern Andes, in the Colombian Caribbean. Combining the 13 variants of the present study with 14 previously reported and using TMRCA, a new QM3 tree proposal is generated. This method makes it possible to increase the number of sublineages of QM3 with a higher resolution and to detect differences between the different populations of Vaupés in the Amazon, as in the case of the Kubeos and Pisamiras, the latter of which is in grave danger of extinction. These new sublineages are useful for microevolutionary studies of the Amerindian populations of South America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Candidiasis is an opportunistic infection affecting immunosuppressed and hospitalized patients, with mortality rates approaching 40% in Colombia. The growing pharmacological resistance of Candida species and the emergence of multidrug-resistant Candida auris are major public health problems. Therefore, different antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are being investigated as therapeutic alternatives to control candidiasis effectively and safely. This work aimed to evaluate the in vitro antifungal activity of three synthetic AMPs, PNR20, PNR20-1, and 35409, against ATCC reference strains of Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Candida parapsilosis, Candida krusei, and Candida tropicalis, and clinical isolates of C. auris. Antifungal susceptibility testing, determined by broth microdilution, showed that the AMPs have antifungal activity against planktonic cells of all Candida species evaluated. In C. auris and C. albicans, the peptides had an effect on biofilm formation and cell viability, as determined by the XTT assay and flow cytometry, respectively. Also, morphological alterations in the membrane and at the intracellular level of these species were induced by the peptides, as observed by transmission electron microscopy. In vitro, the AMPs had no cytotoxicity against L929 murine fibroblasts. Our results showed that the evaluated AMPs are potential therapeutic alternatives against the most important Candida species in Colombia and the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to understand how micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) can be innovative while developing their reputation. In doing so, this study focuses on companies classified as promoters of Colombia's "orange economy," which relates to the country's cultural and creative diversity. Firms with a non-technological emphasis also require knowledge, innovation, and reputation to perform better. In this regard, the study is based on the work of Hormiga and Garcia-Almeida (2016) who proposed the relationship between accumulated knowledge and innovation as background of reputation. In this paper, the purpose is to understand the internal reputation-building process carried out by MSMEs and the variables that intervene. Therefore, this research accounts for how MSMEs can build their reputation through innovation and accumulated knowledge. For this, a survey was conducted in 320 orange economy MSMEs located in Bogotá, Colombia, and the relationship of these variables was statistically tested through a quantitative analysis of multivariate data. Innovation was found to not impact the performance of companies, but this can be associated to factors that were not considered in this research. However, it is proposed to refine the original model by considering the manager's perspective. It is recommended that entrepreneurs invest resources in accumulating internal (tacit) knowledge to improve skills that enhance reputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Dyna is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Medellin, Facultad de Minas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Psychologia is the property of Universidad de San Buenaventura and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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Copyright of Médicas UIS is the property of Universidad Industrial de Santander and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: Head and neck cancer (HNC) is the seventh most common type of cancer in the world. In Latin America, data on HCN are limited by the scarcity of population‐based cancer registries. Objective: To describe survival and changes in the time trends of incidence and mortality rates of HCN with data from the Cali Cancer Population Registry (Colombia) during 1962‐2018. Method: Males and females of any age residing in Cali were included. The trends in incidence rates (1962‐2016) and mortality (1984‐2018) were analysed by calculating the mean annual percentage change (APC). Five‐year net survival was estimated for the four 5‐year periods of 1996‐2015 using the Pohar‐Perme method. Results: During 1962‐2015, 5,110 new cases of HNC were recorded: 1,506 in the larynx, 1,377 in the oral cavity, 487 in the nose and paranasal sinuses, 643 in the oropharynx, 603 in the salivary glands and 360 in Naso‐Hypopharynx region. The incidence rates of HNC decreased significantly at all subsites, except in those associated with the human papillomavirus. Between 1984 and 2018, there were 1,941 deaths attributed to HNC, and the mortality rate decreased significantly. The 5‐year age‐standardized net survival was 43.2% in 1996‐2000, remained stable during the following decade, and for 2011‐2015 it was 50.9%. Conclusion: The incidence and mortality of HNC in Cali decreased significantly during the study period in both sexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Colombiana de Psicologia is the property of Universidad Catolica de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal History of Latin American Education / Revista Historia de la Educación Latinoamericana is the property of Universidad Pedagogica y Tecnologica de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aim: To determine the professional profile and the work conditions of nurses working in intensive care units (ICU) in Colombia, Argentina, Peru and Brazil. Background: ICUs require a differentiated professional profile to provide quality care, and appropriate working conditions, leading to a transformation of care and management practices. Design: Descriptive multicentre cross‐sectional observational study. Methods: An online survey was applied to identify both the characteristics of the professional profile and the working conditions. 1,427 ICU nursing professionals were included. RStudio statistical software was used for the analysis of the information. Descriptive statistics were used for the presentation of the results. The STROBE checklist for cross‐sectional studies was used in this study. Results: Only 33.6% of the professionals had a specialisation degree in intensive care. The skills that were most frequently put into practice were communication (68.5%) and care management (78.5%). The most predominant nurse‐to‐patient ratios were 1:2, and greater than 1:6. 59.1% of the nurses had an indefinite term contract, 38.8% worked 48 hours per week and 49.8% had rotating shifts. Only 50.4% of them received incentives. The average salary ranged between 348 and 1,500 USD. 64.5% of the participants were satisfied with their job. Conclusion: It is necessary to strengthen nurses' professional profile by promoting both postgraduate education and the development of troubleshooting and teamwork skills. It is necessary to standardise the nurse‐to‐patient ratio, improve wages and increase incentives to achieve greater job satisfaction. Relevance to practice: The knowledge and the improvement of both the professional profile and the work conditions of nurses working in intensive care units will improve the quality of the care given to critical patients and, therefore, the quality of health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Íkala: Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura is the property of Universidad de Antioquia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Recent research has found that repetitive negative thinking (RNT) is an important transdiagnostic process both in adult and child psychopathology. This finding has led some authors to design content-independent measures of RNT that can be administered across disorders. One of these instruments is the Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire (PTQ) and its version for children (PTQ-C). This study presents the Spanish translation of the PTQ-C and its psychometric analysis in a sample of 1,127 Colombian children and adolescents (8-18 years old). All items obtained good discrimination indexes, and internal consistency was excellent (.93). A cross-validation study was conducted to analyze the factor structure of the PTQ-C, which strongly supported the one-factor structure. Measurement invariances across gender and age-group (8-12 and 13-18 years old) were also found. The PTQ-C scores for older boys were lower than for younger boys, whereas the inverse pattern was found for girls. The PTQ-C showed strong correlations with measures of pathological worry, emotional symptoms, and psychological inflexibility. In conclusion, the Spanish translation of the PTQ-C appears to be a valid and reliable measure of RNT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The signing of the peace agreement between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP) guerrilla in 2016 symbolized a de-escalation of the conflict. But, in addition to the political will of the parties previously in conflict, it is necessary to transform the psychosocial infrastructure of the culture of conflict. To analyze this dynamic, beliefs and emotions that constitute barriers to peace, and those that allow for an unfreezing, were studied in narratives of 1,231 Colombians at two different moments in time: the signing of the agreement in 2016, and its implementation in 2018. The results show the following: (a) an unfreezing during the signing, through instigating and mediating beliefs, (b) presence of conflict ethos in a differentiated way during the two moments, (c) change in the language of the hindering beliefs, according to dominant political narratives of each moment, and (d) tendency to freeze during implementation, supported by hindering beliefs, based on the context of social and political polarization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study examined the variation in city-level amenable mortality, i.e. mortality due to conditions that can be mitigated in the presence of timely and effective healthcare, in 363 Latin American cities and measured associations between amenable-mortality rates and urban metrics.Methods: We used death records from 363 cities with populations of >100 000 people in nine Latin American countries from 2010 to 2016. We calculated sex-specific age-adjusted amenable-mortality rates per 100 000. We fitted multilevel linear models with cities nested within countries and estimated associations between amenable mortality and urban metrics, including population size and growth, fragmentation of urban development and socio-economic status.Results: Cities in Mexico, Colombia and Brazil had the highest rates of amenable mortality. Overall, >70% of the variability in amenable mortality was due to between-country heterogeneity. But for preventable amenable mortality, those for which the healthcare system can prevent new cases, most of the variability in rates occurred between cities within countries. Population size and fragmentation of urban development were associated with amenable mortality. Higher fragmentation of urban development was associated with lower amenable mortality in small cities and higher amenable mortality in large cities. Population growth and higher city-level socio-economic status were associated with lower amenable mortality.Conclusions: Most of the variability in amenable mortality in Latin American cities was due to between-county heterogeneity. However, urban metrics such as population size and growth, fragmentation of urban development and city-level socio-economic status may have a role in the distribution of amenable mortality across cities within countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la Facultad de Derecho y Ciencias Políticas is the property of Revista Faculdad de Derecho y Ciencias Politicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

An ethos of violence based on political ideologies aiming to delegitimize an adversary is a psychosocial barrier to solving lasting conflicts, such as in Colombia. Beyond the signing of a peace agreement, the cessation of political violence implies modifying the complex symbolic dynamics constructed by various opposing actors to legitimize acts of direct violence. This research evaluates whether a new rhetoric that encourages the development of a peace culture has replaced the ideological rhetoric of various social actors involved in dialog and negotiations to end the armed conflict between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (FARC-EP). To this end, a textual analysis of the ideological rhetoric disseminated through Twitter® by several actors in Colombian society was conducted to identify the expressions used (semantic analysis) to legitimize or delegitimize those involved in the conflict in the last negotiation year (2016). The outcome indicates that the agenda of topics revolves around peace, and although the ideological differences between the negotiation table (i.e., the government and FARC-EP) and the opposition party are evident in the published messages, all the actors are striving to develop a rhetoric of tolerance and coexistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Entomología is the property of Universidad del Valle and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de Derecho Privado is the property of Universidad de los Andes and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Espacios is the property of Talleres de Impresos Oma and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Most primates live in lowland ecosystems; however, some species have been particularly successful at colonizing higher altitudes, such as night monkeys (genus Aotus). Studies of the ecology of night monkeys in tropical forests are numerous, but behavioral data are limited due to the challenges associated with their nocturnal habits. Although Andean night monkeys (A. lemurinus) live in mountain forests >1000 m.a.s.l. and Caribbean night monkeys (A. griseimembra) live in rainforests <1000 m.a.s.l., they are found at similar tropical latitudes. Between 2018 and 2019, we followed three groups of A. lemurinus and one group of A. griseimembra at three sites in Colombia and recorded data on their ecology and behavior. Although they live at different altitudes, the two species had similar activity patterns and diet, investing approximately half of the night in resting (48%), and feeding primarily on fruits. We found differences among groups in the time invested in feeding on flowers, their home range, and distance traveled per night. These differences may be related to the unique characteristics of each study site and differences in resource availability and floristic composition of forests at different altitudes. Although the most important families in their diet were Moraceae and Urticaceae, highland groups also fed frequently on a large number of Melastomataceae and Rubiaceae trees. This research suggests these two nocturnal primates, living in contrasting environments, use similar strategies to cope with the challenges of being active at night in tropical forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LGBT people continue to be victim of discrimination, exclusion, and violence due to the prejudices that circulate about them in society, these being the product of a process of anchoring social representations in which, for centuries, these social sectors were categorized as sinners, criminals, or sick people. This discrimination continues to appear despite the decriminalization and depathologization of sexual diversity in the 20th century and the active presence of people with non-hegemonic gender identities and sexual orientations. From this presence, there were predictions of changes in the current public sphere and in future generations that would favor inclusion of these people. These representations were analyzed in the research Representaciones sociales de la inclusión de la población lgbt en la educación superior, en las facultades de salud de una institución Universitaria de Bogotá D. C., Colombia, carried out in three health sciences faculties, in which many people with non-hegemonic sexual orientations and gender identities feel stereotyped and judged, as evidenced by previous research on stigma and discrimination against lgbt people. Taking into account this background, the purpose of this research was to determine the concepts and beliefs of students, teachers, and administrators in relation to this population, as well as to study the role of sociodemographic characteristics such as gender, age, religion, customs, and educational level in the anchoring of these concepts and beliefs. Among other aspects, it was found that certain religious discourses continue to reproduce prejudices around these groups and are therefore an obstacle to the adequate work of health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Boletín Científico Centro de Museos de Historia Natural is the property of Universidad de Caldas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

aimed to describe the prevalence of obesity, overweight and abdominal obesity and their association with household socioeconomic status (SES) and personal educational level in the five major cities of Colombia (Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla and Bucaramanga). Materials and Methods: We collected demographic and anthropometric measurements from a population-based, stratified, multi-stage probability sample of individuals aged 2– 75 years. Study surveys and anthropometric measurements were administered by highly trained staff. All reported prevalences are expanded to the target population, taking into account the sampling design. Results: The study sample included 1922 participants. In children and adolescents, the prevalence of overweight and obesity were respectively 23% and 8.8%. Overweight was most prevalent in the 2– 4 (30.9%), followed by the 5– 11 (23.8%) and the 12– 17 age group (17.8%). The combined prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity increased with SES (16.8% in the lowest vs 42.8% in the highest stratum). In adults (18– 75 years), the prevalence of excess body weight was 57.5% (36.2% overweight, 21.3% obesity), the prevalence of abdominal obesity was 34.4%, all prevalences increased with age. Obesity was far more prevalent among adult women (29.4%) than men (12.6%) (p˂0.001). Adult obesity and abdominal obesity decreased significantly and monotonically with SES and were most prevalent in individuals with the lowest educational level (35.3% and 50.7%, respectively). Almost 40% of overweight adults had abdominal obesity. Conclusion: Obesity and abdominal obesity are highly prevalent in the urban population of Colombia, and much more frequent among adults of lower SES and educational level. Excess body weight affected more often children of higher SES. Public health measures are urgently needed to tackle the spread of the obesity epidemic in Colombia and other Latin American countries, with a focus on low-income and low-educational level segments of society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Espacios is the property of Talleres de Impresos Oma and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Formación Universitaria is the property of Centro de Informacion Tecnologica (CIT) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Ingeniería Solidaria is the property of Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Colombia Medica is the property of Universidad del Valle and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Summary: Background: Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) is an epidermal autoimmune disease, characterized by the presence of autoantibodies against the desmosomal protein desmoglein 1. Genetic and environmental factors contribute to PF, a complex disease that is endemic in Brazil and Colombia and neighbouring countries, and in Tunisia. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) may participate in gene regulation by interacting with DNA, proteins and other RNAs. Dysregulation of lncRNAs has recently been recognized as an important coplayer in the onset or progression of complex diseases. In addition, single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located in lncRNA genes have been associated with differential risk to cancer, autoimmunity and infection. Objectives: Here, we aimed to investigate whether SNPs in lncRNA genes are associated with differential susceptibility to endemic PF. Materials and methods: We integrated data from the lncRNA SNP database with genome‐wide genotype data obtained for 229 patients and 6681 controls. We tested the association between endemic PF and 2080 SNPs located in lncRNAs applying logistic regression. Results: The most significantly associated SNP was rs7144332 (OR = 1·63, P = 2·8 × 10–6), located in the lncRNA gene AL110292·1. Results for five other SNPs were suggestive of association (P < 0·001). In silico analysis indicated that five of the six SNPs impact transcription, three may influence lncRNA's secondary structure, and three may alter microRNA–lncRNA interactions. Conclusions: We showed, for the first time, that variation in lncRNA genes may influence pemphigus pathogenesis. Our findings highlight the importance of lncRNA variation in autoimmune and possibly other complex diseases and suggest polymorphisms for functional validation. What's already known about this topic? The multifactorial autoimmune blistering skin disease pemphigus foliaceus (PF) presents a genetic susceptibility component that is not fully understood.Although PF is rare worldwide, it reaches a prevalence of 1·5–3% in some regions of Brazil, the highest ever reported for an autoimmune disease.Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) polymorphisms have been associated with some complex diseases but have not yet been studied in any form of pemphigus. What does this study add? Genetic variation of lncRNA may influence susceptibility to PF via its effect on lncRNA structure, on transcription of nearby genes, and on microRNA–lncRNA interactions.We have shown, for the first time, that variation in lncRNA genes may influence PF pathogenesis. What is the translational message? Our findings show that lncRNA variation is part of the polygenic risk component in the pathogenesis of pemphigus and possibly other complex skin diseases, indicating that lncRNAs can be explored as potential new drug targets. Linked Comment: Amber. Br J Dermatol 2019; 181:241–242. Plain language summary available online Respond to this article [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Investigación Agraria y Ambiental is the property of Revista de Investigacion Agraria y Ambiental and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

An assessment on the amount and spatial distribution of forest aboveground biomass (AGB) for the forests in Colombia was generated using in-situ national forest inventory data (IDEAM, 2018), in combination with multispectral optical data and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite imagery. ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 gamma-0 backscatter annual mosaics (2015–2017) provided by JAXA were normalised and corrected using previous ALOS PALSAR annual mosaics (2007–2010) as reference. A multi-temporal Landsat 7 & 8 composite over the whole of Colombia was used for the year 2016 ± 1. The national forest inventory in-situ plots used to train our model consisted of 5-subplots each and were collected during the period 2015–2017 in the main biomes of the country. A sample of permanent 1ha plots (PPMs) were also measured. Nationally developed allometries (Alvarez et al., 2012) were used to estimate AGB. A non-parametric random forests (RF) algorithm was used within a k-fold framework to retrieve AGB at 30 m spatial resolution for the whole of Colombia. The algorithm was trained using forest inventory plots and validated at plot (0.35 ha) and PPM level (1 ha). The accuracy assessment found coefficients of determination (R2) of 0.68 and 0.61, and relative root mean square errors (Rel. RMSE) of 49% and 34% at plot and at PPM level, respectively. The results showed that the average AGB for the country was 118.1 t ha−1 (45.6 t ha−1 for Caribe, 75.4 t ha−1 Andes, 122.5 t ha−1 Pacifico, 32.7 t ha−1 Orinoquia, and 200.5 t ha−1 for the Amazonia, regionally), and that the total carbon stocks for the country were 6.7 Pg C for the period 2015–2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the associations between the muscle mass to visceral fat (MVF) ratio and cardiometabolic risk factors in a large population of college students in Colombia and to propose cut-off points of this index for the metabolic syndrome (MetS). A total of 1464 young adults recruited from the FUPRECOL (Asociación de la Fuerza Prensil con Manifestaciones Tempranas de Riesgo Cardiovascular en Jóvenes y Adultos Colombianos) study were categorised into four groups based on their MVF ratio. Muscle mass and visceral fat level of the participants were measured using a bioelectrical impedance analysis. Cardiometabolic risk factors including lifestyle characteristics, anthropometry, blood pressure and biochemical parameters were assessed. The prevalence of moderate to severe obesity, hypertension and the MetS was higher in subjects in quartile (Q)1 (lower MVF ratio) (P <0·001). ANCOVA revealed that the subjects in Q1 had higher cardiometabolic disturbances, including altered anthropometry, blood pressure, muscle strength and biochemical parameters after adjusting for age and sex compared with young adults in higher MVF ratio quartiles (P <0·001). Muscular mass and physical activity levels were significantly lower in subjects with a lower MVF ratio (P <0·001). The receiver operating characteristic curve analyses indicated that in men the best MVF ratio cut-off point for detecting the MetS was 18·0 (AUC 0·83, sensitivity 78 % and specificity 77 %) and for women, the MVF ratio cut-off point was 13·7 (AUC 0·85, sensitivity 76 % and specificity 87 %). A lower MVF ratio is associated with a higher risk cardiometabolic profile in early adulthood, supporting that the MVF ratio could be used as a complementary screening tool that may help clinicians identify young adults at high cardiometabolic risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Universitas Odontológica is the property of Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)