Agricultural University of Havana

BackgroundApolipoprotein E (ApoE) is a protein that plays a critical role in regulating lipid metabolism. It functions as a ligand for hepatic receptors and contributes to the maintenance of glucose and cholesterol homeostasis. Polymorphisms in the APOE gene result in the manifestation of six distinct genotypes, each with a unique function in metabolism. Genotyping facilitates the identification of individuals who are more susceptible to late‐onset Alzheimer's disease, a condition associated with the presence of allele 4 of the APOE gene. This knowledge is instrumental in guiding diagnosis, assessing risk, preventing, and treating the disease.MethodA cohort of 100 individuals, 94 of whom presented late‐onset Alzheimer's disease symptoms, was evaluated using a novel assay, SUMASIGNAL APOE. The method commenced with the extraction of genomic DNA from dried blood on filter paper using Chelex‐100 chelating resin. Allele‐specific primers were designed for the alleles and for conserved regions of the APOE gene to serve as internal controls for each amplification. Reaction mixtures Ɛ2, Ɛ3, and Ɛ4 were standardized for allelic characterization of each sample. Multiplex real‐time PCR and high‐resolution melting analysis (HRMA) were performed to distinguish alleles and internal controls.ResultThe analytical method demonstrated 100% concordance with a commercial kit, intra‐ and inter‐assay coefficients of variation of less than 0.46%, and the capacity to detect up to 5 ng/µL DNA from samples per mix.ConclusionThe assay was demonstrated to be specific for the detection of target sequences and to be a simple and affordable method for determining the genotype of each individual. The development and validation of this diagnostician enabled the execution of a study, a pioneering endeavor in Cuba, that investigated allelic frequencies in a population of individuals afflicted with neurodegenerative disorders.

Extracellular enzymatic activity serves as a sensitive gauge for environmental shifts, particularly in aquatic environments. This study explores the influence of natural and human-induced factors on enzymatic activity in two freshwater ecosystems in western Cuba. Various environmental parameters were assessed across multiple sampling stations along the Almendares and San Juan Rivers, including water and sediment measurements. Enzymatic activity, including protease, acid and alkaline phosphatases, lipases, and catalase, was measured in both water and sediment samples. The study revealed spatial and temporal variations in enzymatic activities within ecosystems. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that nutrient concentrations, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and heavy metals in sediments explain enzymatic activity variations. In the water column, factors such as total heterotrophs, phosphates, pH, and COD strongly influenced enzymatic activities in the Almendares River, while chlorophyll a, nitrites, thermotolerant coliforms, temperature, and rainfall played key roles in the San Juan River. The combined assessment of these enzymatic activities offers valuable insights for monitoring freshwater ecosystem health.

Como resultado de las experiencias de la relación educación-patrimonio, logradas en la Maestría de Trabajo Sociocultural Universitario de la Universidad Agraria de la Habana, se amplió la producción científica gracias al curso Patrimonio y Universidad del primer módulo de esta maestría. Ello condujo, a partir de su sustento teórico – metodológico, a elaborar actividades de superación en educación patrimonial mediante el museo para los docentes de instituciones educativas, lo cual constituye el objetivo del presente trabajo. La investigación parte de la relación universidad-sociedad para desarrollar a la educación patrimonial desde la relación educación-patrimonio-museo, con una concepción extensionista en una doble dirección de la universidad hacia la comunidad intra o extra universitaria, y de la comunidad-museo hacia la universidad. Las actividades de superación en educación patrimonial mediante el museo de tipo educativas, comunicativas, investigativas y extensionistas, permitieron la identificación de los tipos de actividades de superación y jerarquizarlas, de acuerdo a las demandas de las instituciones educativas desde una visión integrada de los procesos sustantivos de la universidad.

La gestión del riesgo destaca la importancia en la integración de los ejes estrategia-desempeño-riesgos, para cumplir metas y objetivos. Precisamente el objetivo de este trabajo es analizar la gestión del riesgo integrada a la estrategia en las instituciones de educación superior, a partir de los cinco componentes que plantea el informe COSO IV “Gestión del riesgo empresarial integrando estrategia y desempeño”. Se utilizaron métodos teóricos como el histórico-lógico, análisis y síntesis e inducción deducción. Los resultados ostentan un acercamiento del riesgo a las estrategias universitarias, la implementación de la gestión del riesgo enfocado a la educación superior, y las experiencias sobre la temática en estos establecimientos de varios países de la región Iberoamericana, a partir de la revisión bibliográfica realizada. Se concluye, en la implementación de la gestión del riesgo en la educación superior, se ha centrado en la fase de evaluación y establecimiento del contexto, obviándose el componente “gobierno y cultura” como elemento crítico en el establecimiento de una cultura de control, y transitan hacia el nuevo modelo.

Esse artigo buscou elaborar biscoitos pela substituição parcial de farinha de trigo (Triticum aestivum) em 20, 30, 50 e 70 % de farinha de taro (Colocasia esculenta), foi realizado um estudo no município sede do Huambo e para tal, foram adquiridos aproximadamente 30kg de inhame taro, transportados em sacos de ráfea, em seguida submeteram-se a lavagem em água corrente e descascados com a ajuda de uma faca inox de forma manual, posteriormente, foram fatiados em um tamanho de 2cm e submetidos a secagem diretamente ao sol por cinco dias, o produto seco, foi pulverizado em um almofariz tradicional e submetidos a tamisação para a separação das partículas mais grossas das finas. A farinha apresentou teores de 7% de lípidos, 3,1% de proteínas, 1,9% de cinza, 0,76% de actividade de água (aw), 11,53% de humidade, 88,47% de matéria seca da farinha, já o pH foi de 6,73 e a acidez titulável de 1,3 mEq NaOH 1N/100g. Os biscoitos apresentaram teores de lípidos entre 14,73 a 26,98g, 4,08 a 5,7% de proteínas, 2 a 2,38% de cinzas, 94 a 98% de matéria-seca, 2,24 e 5,84% de humidade. Os biscoitos de taro apresentaram atributos sem diferenças significativas em relação aos biscoitos padrão.

Oxidoreductases are enzymes with distinctive characteristics that favor their use in different areas, such as agriculture, environmental management, medicine, and analytical chemistry. Among these enzymes, oxidases, dehydrogenases, peroxidases, and oxygenases are very interesting. Because their substrate diversity, they can be used in different biocatalytic processes by homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. Immobilization of these enzymes has favored their use in the solution of different biotechnological problems, with a notable increase in the study and optimization of this technology in the last years. In this review, the main structural and catalytical features of oxidoreductases, their substrate specificity, immobilization, and usage in biocatalytic processes, such as bioconversion, bioremediation, and biosensors obtainment, are presented.

For the rotational speed estimation through gear vibration signals TARSE algorithm has been proposed. One of the steps of TARSE algorithm aims to identify the vibration produced by a gear and its harmonic order from a set of mono-component signals. The current procedure proposed for this task may lead to inaccurate results. This work proposes a procedure for the accurate identification of mono-component signals that include the modulations produced by gear vibration. The algorithm is based on a true harmonic identification procedure including the measure of interdependence relations among the set of mono-component signals, which is a novelty with respect to the original TARSE algorithm, and in an adequate computation of the Modulation Index, this allows to correctly identify the mono-component signal. Real vibration signals are used to validate the proposed technique. The results prove that the proposed algorithm could become an improved second stage of the TARSE method.