Screener, a board game supplemented with online resources, was introduced and distributed by the Brazilian Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics to postgraduate programs as an instructional tool for the process of drug discovery and development (DDD). In this study, we provided a comprehensive analysis of five critical aspects for evaluating the quality of educational games, namely: 1) description of the intervention; 2) underlying pedagogical theory; 3) identification of local educational gaps; 4) impact on diverse stakeholders; and 5) elucidation of iterative quality enhancement processes. We also present qualitative and quantitative assessments of the effectiveness of this game in 11 postgraduate courses. We employed the MEEGA+ online survey, comprising thirty-three close-ended unipolar items with 5-point Likert-type response scales, to assess student perceptions of the quality and utility of Screener. Based on 115 responses, the results indicated a highly positive outlook among students. In addition, we performed a preliminary evaluation of learning outcomes in two courses involving 28 students. Pre- and post-quizzes were applied, each consisting of 20 True/False questions directly aligned with the game's content. The analysis revealed significant improvement in students' performance following engagement with the game, with scores rising from 8.4 to 13.3 (P<0.0001, paired t-test) and 9.7 to 12.7 (P<0.0001, paired t-test). These findings underscore the utility of Screener as an enjoyable and effective tool for facilitating a positive learning experience in the DDD process. Notably, the game can also reduce the educational disparities across different regions of our continental country.

ABSTRACT We explore structural differences in growth patterns and income distribution between central and peripheral countries. We provide dimensions that account for the structural limitations that dependent positions have in the peripheries and semi-peripheries. We conducted an analysis through different estimates of panel data models for 35 central and peripheral countries for the period 1980-2018. In particular, in addition to making the usual estimates of the components of aggregate demand, we include three variables that we consider representative of the dynamics that capital accumulation takes in the periphery: participation in global value chains, levels of foreignization of economies and labor productivity differentials.

RESUMO Exploramos diferenças estruturais nos padrões de crescimento e distribuição de renda entre países centrais e periféricos. Fornecemos dimensões que dão conta das limitações estruturais que as posições dependentes têm nas periferias e semiperiferias. Realizamos uma análise por meio de diferentes estimativas de modelos de dados em painel para 35 países centrais e periféricos para o período 1980-2018. Em particular, além de fazer as estimativas usuais dos componentes da demanda agregada, incluímos três variáveis que consideramos representativas da dinâmica que a acumulação de capital assume na periferia: a participação nas cadeias globais de valor, os níveis de estrangeirização das economias e a produtividade do trabalho diferenciais.

RESUMEN Objetivos. Explorar la frecuencia e impacto de la violencia contra los trabajadores de salud de Argentina y compararlo con el resto de sus pares de Latinoamérica en el contexto de la pandemia por COVID-19. Materiales y métodos. Estudio de corte transversal a través de una encuesta electrónica al personal médico y no médico de Latinoamérica que desempeño tareas asistenciales desde marzo de 2020. Se utilizó una regresión de Poisson para estimar las Razones de Prevalencia crudas (RP) y ajustadas (RPa) con sus respectivos intervalos de confianza al 95%. Resultados. Un total de 3544 participantes de 19 países respondieron la encuesta; 1992 (56,0%) residían en Argentina. Entre los mismos, el 62,9% padeció al menos un hecho de violencia: 97,7% refirió violencia verbal y 11,8% violencia física. El 41,5% de los agredidos padecieron situaciones de violencia al menos una vez por semana. El personal de salud de Argentina vivenció más frecuentemente violencia que los de otros países (62,9% vs. 54,6%, p<0,001), siendo estos eventos más habituales y estresantes (p<0,05). Además, refirieron más frecuentemente haber considerado cambiar sus tareas asistenciales y/o deseos de abandonar su profesión (p<0,001). En la regresión de Poisson, los participantes de Argentina tuvieron una prevalencia de violencia mayor que los trabajadores de salud de la región (14,6%; p<0,001). Conclusiones. Existió una elevada prevalencia de violencia contra el personal de salud de Argentina durante la pandemia por COVID-19. Estos hechos tuvieron un alto impacto negativo entre quienes los padecieron. Nuestros datos sugieren que, esto podría haber sido más frecuente en Argentina respecto de otras regiones del continente.

ABSTRACT Objectives. To explore the frequency and impact of violence against healthcare workers in Argentina and to compare it with the rest of their Latin American peers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted by applying an electronic survey on Latin American medical and non-medical personnel who carried out health care tasks since March 2020. We used Poisson regression to estimate crude (PR) and adjusted (aPR) Prevalence Ratios with their respective 95% confidence intervals. Results. A total of 3544 participants from 19 countries answered the survey; 1992 (56.0%) resided in Argentina. Of these, 62.9% experienced at least one act of violence; 97.7% reported verbal violence and 11.8% physical violence. Of those who were assaulted, 41.5% experienced violence at least once a week. Health personnel from Argentina experienced violence more frequently than those from other countries (62.9% vs. 54.6%, p<0.001), and these events were more frequent and stressful (p<0.05). In addition, Argentinean health personnel reported having considered changing their healthcare tasks and/or desired to leave their profession more frequently (p<0.001). In the Poisson regression, we found that participants from Argentina had a higher prevalence of violence than health workers from the region (14.6%; p<0.001). Conclusions. There was a high prevalence of violence against health personnel in Argentina during the COVID-19 pandemic. These events had a strong negative impact on those who suffered them. Our data suggest that violence against health personnel may have been more frequent in Argentina than in other regions of the continent.

ABSTRACT Objectives. To explore the frequency and impact of violence against healthcare workers in Argentina and to compare it with the rest of their Latin American peers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted by applying an electronic survey on Latin American medical and non-medical personnel who carried out health care tasks since March 2020. We used Poisson regression to estimate crude (PR) and adjusted (aPR) Prevalence Ratios with their respective 95% confidence intervals. Results. A total of 3544 participants from 19 countries answered the survey; 1992 (56.0%) resided in Argentina. Of these, 62.9% experienced at least one act of violence; 97.7% reported verbal violence and 11.8% physical violence. Of those who were assaulted, 41.5% experienced violence at least once a week. Health personnel from Argentina experienced violence more frequently than those from other countries (62.9% vs. 54.6%, p<0.001), and these events were more frequent and stressful (p<0.05). In addition, Argentinean health personnel reported having considered changing their healthcare tasks and/or desired to leave their profession more frequently (p<0.001). In the Poisson regression, we found that participants from Argentina had a higher prevalence of violence than health workers from the region (14.6%; p<0.001). Conclusions. There was a high prevalence of violence against health personnel in Argentina during the COVID-19 pandemic. These events had a strong negative impact on those who suffered them. Our data suggest that violence against health personnel may have been more frequent in Argentina than in other regions of the continent.

RESUMEN Objetivos. Explorar la frecuencia e impacto de la violencia contra los trabajadores de salud de Argentina y compararlo con el resto de sus pares de Latinoamérica en el contexto de la pandemia por COVID-19. Materiales y métodos. Estudio de corte transversal a través de una encuesta electrónica al personal médico y no médico de Latinoamérica que desempeño tareas asistenciales desde marzo de 2020. Se utilizó una regresión de Poisson para estimar las Razones de Prevalencia crudas (RP) y ajustadas (RPa) con sus respectivos intervalos de confianza al 95%. Resultados. Un total de 3544 participantes de 19 países respondieron la encuesta; 1992 (56,0%) residían en Argentina. Entre los mismos, el 62,9% padeció al menos un hecho de violencia: 97,7% refirió violencia verbal y 11,8% violencia física. El 41,5% de los agredidos padecieron situaciones de violencia al menos una vez por semana. El personal de salud de Argentina vivenció más frecuentemente violencia que los de otros países (62,9% vs. 54,6%, p<0,001), siendo estos eventos más habituales y estresantes (p<0,05). Además, refirieron más frecuentemente haber considerado cambiar sus tareas asistenciales y/o deseos de abandonar su profesión (p<0,001). En la regresión de Poisson, los participantes de Argentina tuvieron una prevalencia de violencia mayor que los trabajadores de salud de la región (14,6%; p<0,001). Conclusiones. Existió una elevada prevalencia de violencia contra el personal de salud de Argentina durante la pandemia por COVID-19. Estos hechos tuvieron un alto impacto negativo entre quienes los padecieron. Nuestros datos sugieren que, esto podría haber sido más frecuente en Argentina respecto de otras regiones del continente.

Abstract Introduction: Reinke’s Edema (RE) is a laryngeal lesion related to excessive tobacco smoking, voice overuse, and laryngopharyngeal reflux. Although the risk of malignancy has been considered low in literature, RE is classified among precancerous lesions. Objectives: We investigated DNA Copy Number Alterations (CNAs) in specimens of RE and its potential association with malignant progression. Methods: We used array-based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH, Agilent 4 × 180 K platform) to study eight RE cases. All patients were heavy tobacco users for at least 30 years, and none of them progressed to cancer in the follow-up (>8 years). Two RE presented mild dysplasia, one moderate dysplasia, and no histological alterations were found in the remaining five cases. CNAs were compared with the Database of Genomic Variants (DGV) and genes mapped on altered regions had their functions annotated. Results: Six of eight patients showed different rare copy number alterations on chromosomes 2q37.3, 4q13.1, 4q13.3, 7q11.22, 10p14, and 13q34. A gain of the whole chromosome 8 were detected in one case. Of interest, four of eight RE cases showed copy number imbalances involving genes previously described in several tumor types (RASA3, COL6A3, LINC00707, LINP1, SMR3A, and SMR3B). Conclusion: The genomic imbalances herein found in RE have the potential to contribute to the phenotype but with limited or no risk of cancer. A long-term follow-up in a large series of patients could clarify the mechanisms involved in the malignant progression of RE. Level of evidence: 4.

Abstract Microstructure, texture, and mechanical and fracture characterization of three insulating commercial refractories were carried out in order to establish a correlation between these properties. The materials were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) with Rietveld and Le Bail approximation to perform phase quantification, mercury intrusion porosimetry, and scanning electron microscopy. The mechanical behavior of insulating commercial refractories was studied with a multi-technique approach that involved a three-point bending test, uniaxial compression test, and single-edge notched beam (SENB) test. Stable fracture tests were successfully performed. The obtained results showed that the main differences between the materials studied were pore size distribution and mineralogical composition. Materials with the major amount of mullite had the highest values of the mechanical parameters in the different performed tests. Microstructure texture properties Xray X ray XRD (XRD quantification porosimetry microscopy multitechnique multi technique threepoint point test singleedge single edge SENB (SENB composition

Abstract Inflammation is a necessary step in response to injuries, being vital in restoring homeostasis and facilitating tissue healing. Among the cells that play a crucial role in inflammatory responses, stromal cells, including fibroblasts, have an undeniable significance in fine-tuning the magnitude of mediators that directly affect hyper-inflammatory responses and tissue destruction. Fibroblasts, the dominant cells in the gingival connective tissue, are a very heterogeneous population of cells, and more recently they have been receiving well deserved attention as central players and often the ‘principal dancers’ of many pathological processes ranging from inflammation and fibrosis to altered immunity and cancer. The goal of the current investigation is to dive into the exact role of the stromal fibroblast and the responsible mechanistic factors involved in both regulation and dysregulation of the inflammatory responses. This article reviews the most recent literature on how fibroblasts, in their different activation states or subtypes, play a crucial role in contributing to inflammatory outcomes. We will focus on recent findings on inflammatory diseases. We will also provide connections regarding the stromal-immune relationship, which supports the idea of fibroblast coming out from the ‘ensemble’ of cell types to the protagonist role in immunometabolism and inflammaging. Additionally, we discuss the current advances in variation of fibroblast nomenclature and division into clusters with their own suggested function and particularities in gene expression. Here, we provide a perspective for the periodontal implications, discussing the fibroblast role in the infection-driven and inflammatory mediated diseases such as periodontitis. injuries healing fibroblasts finetuning fine tuning hyperinflammatory hyper destruction Fibroblasts principal dancers cancer subtypes outcomes stromalimmune immune relationship ‘ensemble ensemble inflammaging Additionally expression Here implications infectiondriven infection driven periodontitis

Abstract Introduction: In cholelithiasis, lipid and histopathological alterations have been found and suggest the accumulation of lipids in the gallbladder tissue (cholesterolosis), due to the few existing reports a study was carried out to determine their association. Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate the association between the lipid profile and gallbladder histopathology in patients with cholelithiasis undergoing cholecystectomy. Methodology: An observational, cross-sectional, analytical, and prospective study was carried out in a group of patients from the Hospital General de México “Eduardo Liceaga” undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy from January 2015 to January 2020. With approval of the protocol by the ethics and research committee, the following variables were considered: age, sex, BMI, comorbidities (diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, cirrhosis), LDL-C, HDL-C, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and histopathological findings (cholesterolosis, polyps, xanthogranulomatosis, acute cholecystitis, and cholecystitis chronicle). A descriptive and inferential analysis was performed with SPSS v.24. It was considered p < 0.05 as significant. Results: From a group of 302 patients, 133 cases (108 women and 25 men) were included in the study. They presented overweight (39%) and obesity (33%), the lipid profile with hypoalphalipoproteinemia (61%), hypertriglyceridemia (40%), hypercholesterolemia (17%), and elevated LDL-C (16%); and in histopathology chronic cholecystitis (70%), cholesterolosis (28%), and acute cholecystitis (7%). Discussion: Our sample is representative of the Mexican population (in physical characteristics and lipid profile). However, no significant association was found between dyslipidemia and histopathological findings.

Abstract Clear cell ‘‘sugar’’ tumor of the lung is a rare benign tumor arising from perivascular epithelioid cells (PECs). They belong to a group of mesenchymal neoplasms called PEComas. Although widely presumed as benign, due to their rich vascular stroma they are usually avid for the different types of contrast agents used in imaging studies, mimicking a malignant lesion. We report the case of a 66-year-old man in whom a solitary pul monary nodule was discovered during oncological staging for an adenocarcinoma of the prostate who underwent an anatomical pulmonary segmentectomy. The final pathology result was a perivascular epithelioid cell tumor (pulmonary PEComa or clear “sugar” cell tumor).

Resumen Los tumores de células claras “de azúcar” (CCTL) son lesiones benignas muy infrecuentes. Forman parte de un grupo de neoplasias mesenquimales denominadas PEComas que se originan de las células epiteloides perivasculares. Por su rico estroma vascular, suelen tener avidez por los distintos tipos de contrastes utilizados en los estudios de diagnóstico por imágenes, simulando lesiones de estirpe maligna. Presentamos el caso de un paciente de 66 años con hallazgo de un nódulo pulmonar durante la estadificación oncológica por adenocarcinoma de próstata al que se le realizó una segmentectomía pulmonar anatómica. El resultado definitivo de anatomía patológica fue tumor de células epiteloides perivasculares (PEComa pulmonar o tumor de células claras “de azúcar”).

Abstract In this work, we theoretically and experimentally study the issue of the spontaneous capillary rise of a viscous liquid in wedge-shaped tilted cells, with very short angles of aperture, α. We provide the equilibrium profiles y s e and, by means of the Reynolds lubrication equations, we find the time-dependent profiles and the dynamic evolution of the meniscus close to the edge of the wedge, as a function of time, which follow power laws of the form y s ∼ t 1 / 3. Experiments performed at various inclinations are consistent with our theoretical results.

Abstract Introduction Right colon diverticulitis (RCD) is an uncommon condition in Western populations, but its incidence has increased over the last decades. Due to its rarity, many surgeons are unfamiliar with this disease, which is often mistakenly diagnosed as acute appendicitis. The lack of data about the diagnosis and management of RCD in Western populations makes it difficult to establish the optimal therapeutic strategy. Objective To evaluate the outcomes of patients treated for acute RCD and to propose a therapeutic algorithm for the diagnosis and treatment. Methods A retrospective analysis of the medical records of patients treated for acute RCD between 2008 and 2020 by a single experienced colorectal surgeon was performed. Results In total, 12 patients were identified, 8 male and 4 female subjects, with a mean age of 49.6 years; 9 of these patients were of Western origin. The median follow-up time was of 49 months (range: 12 to 144 months). The most frequent symptoms were abdominal pain (100%) and fever (66%). Diagnostic errors in imaging exams occurred in four patients. A total of 6 patients were managed clinically, and the other 6 underwent surgical treatment with right colectomy (n = 5) and total colectomy (n = 1), 2 via laparoscopy and 4 through a laparotomy. The anatomopathological examination confirmed RCD in all operated patients. There was no incidental finding of neoplasia and there were no deaths during the study period. Conclusion Uncomplicated RCD can be treated conservatively with a high success rate. Recurrent cases that impact quality of life or complicated forms of RCD should undergo surgical treatment, preferably through a right laparoscopic colectomy. The authors present a diagnostic and therapeutic algorithm to facilitate the diagnosis and to guide the management of this uncommon disease.

Objectives: Prior research has indicated that no increase in suicides occurred immediately following the declaration of the COVID-19 emergency in Mexico City. Here we examine longer-term overall suicide trends and trends according to basic demographic groups. Methods: We used interrupted time-series analysis to model trends in monthly suicides before COVID-19 (January 1, 2010 to March 31, 2020), comparing the expected number of suicides both overall and according to age and sex with the observed number of suicides for the remainder of 2020 (April 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020). Results: There was an overall increase in suicides during the first 9 months of the pandemic, with a rate ratio of 2.07 (1.86-2.31). The increase began in the early months of the pandemic and remained stable and high after June 2020. Men and women, younger people (< 45) and older people (≥ 45) were affected. The increase was especially high among older women (RR = 3.33; 2.04-5.15). Conclusions: The increase in suicides in Mexico City is worrying and highlights the need to strengthen economic development, mental health, and well-being programs. Suicides among older women should be closely monitored. There is an urgent need to expand primary health care services to include robust suicide prevention and treatment options.

Abstract We report on a functional Fabry-Perot mode interferometer and its application for absolute displacement sensing. The proposed device consists of two well-cleaved tips of standard optical fibers that were introduced into a microcapillary glass with an inner diameter of ∼ 125.5 um; one tip was stuck to the capillary by the application of an electric arc from a standard splice machine, while the other tip was free to be longitudinally moved. The transmission spectrum of the interferometric device exhibited an interferometric pattern due to the reflections of the fundamental mode on the two partial reflecting tip surfaces of the standard optical fibers. The period and the intensity level of the interference pattern depend strongly on the separation between the optical fiber tips caused by the displacement of the free optical fiber tip. This dependence allows for the use of either period or intensity changes for length displacement sensing interrogation. For the period interrogation, the length can be accurately calculated and measured by taking the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) of the detected interference pattern. For intensity interrogation, a simple photodetector can determine the distance that separates the optical fiber tips.