Leading matters! Linking compassion and mindfulness in organizations through servant leadership.

Regardless of where they are, humans are inherently human. In this study, we explore the relationship between compassion, mindfulness, and servant leadership contributing to an overall feeling of safety. Adopting a humanistic approach to human resource management, we examine how compassion and mindfulness intersect under the lens of the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory. Our investigation focuses on understanding how servant leadership facilitates the cultivation of mindfulness through compassion. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we analyze data gathered from 360 workers across diverse occupational sectors. Our findings provide empirical support for the hypothesis that compassion, manifested as a response to suffering, enhances mindfulness levels in the workplace. Specifically, we observe that organizations promoting servant leadership principles are conducive to higher levels of mindfulness among employees. Practically, our study underscores the importance of designing work contexts that prioritize compassion and servant leadership. By doing so, organizations can foster a positive work environment that promotes mindfulness and enhances workplace safety. Our research contributes to the management literature by offering empirical evidence on the role of servant leadership in cultivating compassion and mindfulness, thereby advancing the discourse on workplace safety and organizational well-being.

Biosorption of Pb(II) Using Natural and Treated Ardisia compressa K. Leaves: Simulation Framework Extended through the Application of Artificial Neural Network and Genetic Algorithm.

This study explored the effects of solution pH, biosorbent dose, contact time, and temperature on the Pb(II) biosorption process of natural and chemically treated leaves of A. compressa K. (Raw-AC and AC-OH, respectively). The results show that the surface characteristics of Raw-AC changed following alkali treatment. FT-IR analysis showed the presence of various functional groups on the surface of the biosorbent, which were binding sites for the Pb(II) biosorption. The nonlinear pseudo-second-order kinetic model was found to be the best fitted to the experimental kinetic data. Adsorption equilibrium data at pH = 2-6, biosorbents dose from 5 to 20 mg/L, and temperature from 300.15 to 333.15 K were adjusted to the Langmuir, Freundlich, and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherm models. The results show that the adsorption capacity was enhanced with the increase in the solution pH and diminished with the increase in the temperature and biosorbent dose. It was also found that AC-OH is more effective than Raw-AC in removing Pb(II) from aqueous solutions. This was also confirmed using artificial neural networks and genetic algorithms, where it was demonstrated that the improvement was around 57.7%. The nonlinear Langmuir isotherm model was the best fitted, and the maximum adsorption capacities of Raw-AC and AC-OH were 96 mg/g and 170 mg/g, respectively. The removal efficiency of Pb(II) was maintained approximately after three adsorption and desorption cycles using 0.5 M HCl as an eluent. This research delved into the impact of solution pH, biosorbent characteristics, and operational parameters on Pb(II) biosorption, offering valuable insights for engineering education by illustrating the practical application of fundamental chemical and kinetic principles to enhance the design and optimization of sustainable water treatment systems.

Analysis of the Physiological Response and Reactive Oxygen Species in Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus Communis) in the Phytoremediation Processes with Plant Growth Promoter Bacteria (PGPB).

In the phytoremediation processes of mine tailings with Ricinus communis inoculated with PGPB, it was found that the Serratia K120 bacterium favors the translocation of Al, As, Cu, Pb, Cr, Cd, and Mn to the aerial part of the plant, with a significant difference (p < 0.05) concerning for the control. The bioaccumulation factor (BF) was > 1 in Al with all the bacteria, Pb, Serratia K120, Fe, Pantoea 113, Cu, Pb, Cd, Mn in Serratia MC119 and Serratia K120, Fe and As in Serratia K120 and Pantoea 134, indicating that Ricinus communis inoculated with PGPB functions as a hyper accumulating plant. The PGPB help to reduce the stress in the plants generated by the heavy metals, decreasing the H2O2, and increasing the activity of the enzymes SOD, CAT, APX, POX, and GR, for which the bacteria Serratia K120 and Pantoea 113 can be used as bioinoculants to favor phytoremediation processes.

The Viable but Non-Culturable (VBNC) State, a Poorly Explored Aspect of Beneficial Bacteria.

Many bacteria have the ability to survive in challenging environments; however, they cannot all grow on standard culture media, a phenomenon known as the viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state. Bacteria commonly enter the VBNC state under nutrient-poor environments or under stressful conditions. This review explores the concept of the VBNC state, providing insights into the beneficial bacteria known to employ this strategy. The investigation covers different chemical and physical factors that can induce the latency state, cell features, and gene expression observed in cells in the VBNC state. The review also covers the significance and applications of beneficial bacteria, methods of evaluating bacterial viability, the ability of bacteria to persist in environments associated with higher organisms, and the factors that facilitate the return to the culturable state. Knowledge about beneficial bacteria capable of entering the VBNC state remains limited; however, beneficial bacteria in this state could face adverse environmental conditions and return to a culturable state when the conditions become suitable and continue to exert their beneficial effects. Likewise, this unique feature positions them as potential candidates for healthcare applications, such as the use of probiotic bacteria to enhance human health, applications in industrial microbiology for the production of prebiotics and functional foods, and in the beer and wine industry. Moreover, their use in formulations to increase crop yields and for bacterial bioremediation offers an alternative pathway to harness their beneficial attributes.

The impact of COVID-19 on university students and competences in education for sustainable development: Emotional intelligence, resilience and engagement.

As the Covid-19 pandemic brought most in-person activities to a halt, radical and visible changes were imposed in all social interactions, including teaching and academic activity in general. This challenging setting tested the education system's capacity to successfully address the Sustainable Development Goals. The success of education for sustainable development (ESD) requires training in the specific skills needed to face the highly emotionally demanding post-pandemic context. In this line, this study focuses on university students' capability to understand and manage emotions, an issue considered to be a key factor in ESD. The aim of this study is to show how students' emotional intelligence influenced their resilience, with repercussions on their engagement and subsequent academic performance. The research model was tested through a questionnaire addressed to 340 students from three different universities during the full lockdown of March-May 2020 as a result of the pandemic. Results show that emotional intelligence was positively related to resilience, which in turn was related to engagement, and consequently, resulted in better academic performance. This finding should spark interest in developing emotional intelligence in education, not only because it produces healthy citizens in the long term, but also because of its short-term positive impacts in the classroom, particularly in such adverse situations as those described here. This study provides a model that links classic variables on educational and positive psychology research with ESD in times of COVID-19.

Seroprevalence of Trypanosoma cruzi in Eight Blood Banks in Mexico.

BACKGROUND: The true prevalence of Chagas disease in Mexico is unknown. However, it has been estimated that 1.1-4 million people are infected with Trypanosoma cruzi, which represents a potential risk for transmission of the disease via contaminated blood. AIM OF THE STUDY: To determine the Chagas disease seroprevalence in donors from eight blood banks in the north of Mexico City, and the northeast of the State of Mexico. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Serum samples from blood donors (n = 515,038) were tested to detect the presence of anti-Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies in eight blood banks. The serologic screening test was performed in each of the blood banks. To confirm the seropositive blood donors, only two out of the eight blood banks used a test with a different principle with the aim of identifying anti-Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies. All tests were validated by the Mexican Institute for Epidemiological Diagnosis and Reference. RESULTS: One thousand two hundred and ten blood donors were seropositive for Trypanosoma cruzi, which represents a 0.23% seroprevalence (95% CI 0.22-0.25%). Of the seropositive blood donors, 97.03 % resided in the northeast area of the State of Mexico, Mexico City, and southern part of the State of Hidalgo. CONCLUSIONS: Active transmission of Chagas disease may be occurring in non-endemic regions in the northeast of the State of Mexico.

Two Trajectories of Depressive Symptom Reduction Throughout Behavioral Activation Teletherapy Among Underserved, Ethnically Diverse, Primary Care Patients: A VitalSign6 Report.

While prior research has investigated trajectories of depressive symptom change throughout psychotherapy, such work has not been conducted exclusively among underserved patients receiving brief Behavioral Activation (BA) teletherapy, intervention modifications that should reduce barriers to therapy initiation and engagement. The current project used cluster analysis to determine discrete groups of symptom change among patients receiving an 8-session BA teletherapy intervention, and analyzed whether demographic and clinical characteristics were associated with group membership. Data from 105 patients referred from charity primary care clinics and receiving at least two therapy sessions were analyzed. Patients were predominantly female and Latina. The 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was the outcome. Two categories were determined: a larger group (N = 61) demonstrating initially less severe symptoms and experiencing a gradual recovery, and a smaller group beginning with more severe symptoms, and experiencing a steeper recovery. In both groups, a majority of participants experienced at least a 5-point drop in depressive symptoms, while in the latter group, a majority of patients achieved depressive symptom remission (PHQ-9 < 5). Monolingual Spanish speakers were more likely to be in the former group, but no other demographic or clinical characteristics were associated with group membership. In both groups, a majority of the symptom reduction occurred by sessions 4-6. Therefore, two categories of depressive symptom change, slow responders and rapid responders, occur among patients receiving a brief BA teletherapy intervention. No demographic differences aside from primary language, nor any clinical characteristics, distinguish group membership, suggesting similar patterns of symptom reduction among a primarily underserved sample.

Blockchain Mechanism and Symmetric Encryption in A Wireless Sensor Network.

The Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm allows the connection and exchange of information between millions of smart devices. This paradigm grows and develops exponentially as do the risks and attacks on IoT infrastructures. Security, privacy, reliability, and autonomy are the most important requirements in IoT Systems. If these issues are not guaranteed, the IoT system could be susceptible to malicious users and malicious use. In centralized IoT systems, attacks and risks are greater, especially when data is transmitted between devices and shared with other organizations. To avoid these types of situations, this work presents a decentralized system that guarantees the autonomy and security of an IoT system. The proposed methodology helps to protect data integrity and availability based on the security advantages provided by blockchain and the use of cryptographic tools. The accuracy of the proposed methodology was measured on a temperature and humidity sensing IoT-based Wireless Sensor Network (WSN). The obtained results prove that the proposal fulfils the main requirements of an IoT system. It is autonomous, secure to share and send information between devices and users, has privacy, it is reliable, and the information is available in the infrastructure. Furthermore, this research demonstrates that the proposal is less susceptible to the most frequent attacks against IoT systems, such as linking attack, man in the middle, and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack.

Administration of low doses of the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT attenuates the discriminative signal of amphetamine in the conditioned taste aversion procedure.

Several studies have reported that low doses of the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT reduce cocaine-induced locomotor activity. However, it has also been reported that high doses of 8-OH-DPAT do not substitute for or alter the discriminative signal of cocaine (COC) or amphetamine (AMPH). This study aimed to evaluate the effects of low and high doses of the 5-HT1A agonist 8-OH-DPAT on the discriminative signal of AMPH using conditioned taste aversion as a drug discrimination procedure. Additionally, to establish a correlation between the behavioral effects in drug discrimination and changes in dopamine (DA) and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) concentrations, we evaluated the effect of systemic administration of low or high doses of the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT and of the 5-HT1A receptor antagonist WAY100135 on DA and GABA extracellular concentrations in the nucleus accumbens (nAcc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA), respectively, using cerebral microdialysis. The behavioral results showed that low but not high doses of 8-OH-DPAT produced a reduction in the AMPH-induced discriminative signal, while WAY100135 administration prevented such effects. The microdialysis results showed that a low dose of 8-OH-DPAT decreased extracellular DA concentrations in the nAcc and increased GABA concentrations in the VTA. Pretreatment with WAY100135 prevented these effects. These data support the hypothesis that 5-HT1A receptors modulate the behavioral effects of psychostimulant drugs, such as AMPH, through somatodendritic 5-HT1A autoreceptors in the raphe nucleus indicating that 5-HT1A receptors may be an important target for the development of pharmacological treatments for psychostimulant addiction.

The Impact of Rehabilitation-oriented Virtual Reality Device in Patients With Ischemic Stroke in the Early Subacute Recovery Phase: Study Protocol for a Phase III, Single-Blinded, Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial.

BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE: Stroke is considered the most common cause of adult disability. Intensive rehabilitation protocols outperform nonintensive counterparts. The subacute stroke phase represents a potential window to recovery. Virtual reality (VR) has been shown to provide a more stimulating environment, allowing for increased patient compliance. However, the quality of current literature comparing VR with standard therapies is limited. Our aim is to measure the impact of VR versus standard therapy on the recovery of the upper limb motor function in patients with stroke in the early subacute recovery phase. METHOD: This is a randomized, controlled trial that will assign 262 patients to tailor-made standard rehabilitation (TMSR) or TMSR plus immersive VR device. The trial will be conducted in an urban rehabilitation clinic in the United States with expertise in the management of poststroke patients. Patients will be 18 to 70 years of age and in the early subacute period (30-90 days post ischemic stroke). The primary outcome will be the change of Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Upper Extremity (FMA-UE) score, measured at baseline and 13 weeks after randomization. The secondary outcome will be the change in the UK Functional Independence Measure and Functional Assessment Measure (UK FIM-FAM) score at the same time points. DISCUSSION: If the use of VR in the rehabilitation of patients with stroke proves to have a significant impact on their motor recovery, it will constitute an extremely important step into decreasing the functional impairment associated with stroke and the related health care expense burden.

Under an integrative taxonomic approach: the description of a new species of the genus Loxosceles (Araneae, Sicariidae) from Mexico City.

A new species of the spider genus Loxosceles Heineken & Lowe, 1832, Loxosceles tenochtitlan Valdez-Mondragón & Navarro-Rodríguez, sp. nov., is described based on adult male and female specimens from the states of Mexico City, Estado de Mexico and Tlaxcala. Integrative taxonomy including traditional morphology, geometric and lineal morphology, and molecules (DNA barcodes of cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) and internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2)), were used as evidence to delimit the new species. Four methods were used for molecular analyses and species delimitation: 1) corrected p-distances under neighbor joining (NJ), 2) automatic barcode gap discovery (ABGD), 3) general mixed yule coalescent model (GMYC), and 4) poisson tree processes (bPTP). All molecular methods, traditional, geometric and lineal morphology were consistent in delimiting and recognizing the new species. Loxosceles tenochtitlan sp. nov. is closely related to L. misteca based on molecular data. Although both species are morphologically similar, the average p-distance from CO1 data was 13.8% and 4.2% for ITS2 data. The molecular species delimitation methods recovered well-supported monophyletic clusters for samples of L. tenochtitlan sp. nov. from Mexico City + Tlaxcala and for samples of L. misteca from Guerrero. Loxosceles tenochtitlan sp. nov. is considered a unique species for three reasons: (1) it can be distinguished by morphological characters (genitalic and somatic); (2) the four different molecular species delimitation methods were congruent to separate both species; and (3) there is variation in leg I length of males between both species, with the males of L. misteca having longer legs than males of L. tenochtitlan sp. nov., also morphometrically, the shape of tibiae of the palp between males of both species is different.

Long-term outcomes of Guillain-Barré syndrome possibly associated with Zika virus infection.

BACKGROUND: This prospective cohort investigation analyzed the long-term functional and neurologic outcomes of patients with Zika virus-associated Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) in Barranquilla, Colombia. METHODS: Thirty-four Zika virus-associated GBS cases were assessed a median of 17 months following acute GBS illness. We assessed demographics, results of Overall Disability Sum Scores (ODSS), Hughes Disability Score (HDS), Zung Depression Scale (ZDS), and Health Related Quality of Life (HRQL) questionnaires; and compared outcomes indices with a normative sample of neighborhood-selected control subjects in Barranquilla without GBS. RESULTS: Median age at time of acute neurologic onset was 49 years (range, 10-80); 17 (50%) were male. No deaths occurred. At long-term follow-up, 25 (73%) patients had a HDS 0-1, indicating complete / near complete recovery. Among the group, HDS (mean 1.4, range 0-4), ODSS (mean 1.9, range 0-9) and ZDS score (mean 34.4, range 20-56) indicated mild / moderate ongoing disability. Adjusting for age and sex, Zika virus-associated GBS cases were similar to a population comparison group (n = 368) in Barranquilla without GBS in terms of prevalence of physical or mental health complaints, though GBS patients were more likely to have an ODSS of ≥ 1 (OR 8.8, 95% CI 3.2-24.5) and to suffer from moderate / moderate-severe depression (OR 3.89, 95% CI 1.23-11.17) than the comparison group. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term outcomes of Zika virus-associated GBS are consistent with those associated with other antecedent antigenic stimuli in terms of mortality and ongoing long-term morbidity, as published in the literature. Persons with Zika virus-associated GBS more frequently reported disability and depression after approximately one year compared with those without GBS.

Phytoremediation assisted by mycorrhizal fungi of a Mexican defunct lead-acid battery recycling site.

A field experiment was conducted during 15 months to study the effects of four arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) on the growth of Ricinus communis accession SF7. Plants were established on amended soil (vermicompost:sawdust:soil 1:1:1) severely polluted by lead-acid batteries (LAB) located at Mexico State, Mexico. Plants inoculated with Acaulospora sp., Funneliformis mosseae and Gigaspora gigantea had 100% survival in comparison to non-inoculated plants (57%). These same AMF enhanced palmitic and linoleic acids content in seeds of R. communis. Acaulospora sp. modified rhizosphere soil pH and decreased 3.5 folds Pb foliar concentrations while F. mosseae BEG25 decreased three times Pb soil availability in comparison to non-inoculated plants. Spatial changes in Pb soil availability were observed at the end of this research. No fungal effect on P, Ca, Cu foliar concentrations, soluble sugars, proline, chlorophyll or on the activity of two oxidative stress enzymes was observed. Mycorrhizal colonization from the inoculated fungi was between 40% and 60%, while colonization by native fungi was between 16% and 22%. A similar percentage of foliar total phenolic compounds was observed in non-mycorrhizal plants and those inoculated with G. gigantea and Acaulospora sp. This is the first research reporting effects of AMF on R. communis (castor bean) shrubs when grown on a LAB recycling site suggesting the use of Acaulospora sp. and F. mosseae BEG25 in phytostabilization to ameliorate Pb pollution and decreasing its ecological risk.

Effect of ultrasound treatment on the extraction of antioxidants from Ardisia compressa Kunth fruits and identification of phytochemicals by HPLC-ESI-MS.

The influence of ultrasound-assisted extraction of phytochemicals from Ardisia compressa Kunth on the antioxidant capacity was investigated. The factors evaluated were: ultrasound extraction time (10, 20 and 30 min), ethanol concentration (0, 35, 70 %) and solid/liquid ratio (1:4, 1:8 and 1:12 g mL-1). The L9 (3)3 array was applied, and the DPPH• scavenging capacity of treatments was evaluated to obtain optimal extraction conditions. Finally, the phytochemicals were characterized by high-performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS). Ten minutes of ultrasound extraction using 0 % of ethanol and solid/liquid ratio 1:12 g mL-1 were the optimal conditions of extraction. The HPLC-ESI-MS analysis revealed the presence of gluconic acid, quercetin-3-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside, demethylligstroside, ponicidin, 4-caffeoylquinic acid, rosmarinic acid, and galloyl-hexoside. The optimal ultrasound-assisted extraction conditions were defined by applying the Taguchi methodology. The phytochemicals identified in A. compressa fruits suggest its use as a potential source of bioactive compounds.

A new species of Loxosceles Heineken & Lowe (Araneae, Sicariidae), with updated distribution records and biogeographical comments for the species from Mexico, including a new record of Loxoscelesrufescens (Dufour).

A new species of the spider genus Loxosceles Heineken & Lowe, 1832, Loxoscelesmalintzi sp. n., is described from the states of Puebla, Morelos and Guerrero, in the central region of Mexico. The description is based on adult males and females with morphological and ultra-morphological images. Updated distribution maps are provided for the 39 species recorded from the Mexican territory (including the new species). The states with the greatest diversity are Baja California Sur, Baja California and Sonora, with five species each. A total of 441 records for the 39 species, based on arachnological collections, data bases and literature, were used to update the distribution maps. Loxoscelesboneti Gertsch, 1958 is the species with the highest number of records in Mexico, with a total of 58 records from different localities. The states with the most records so far are Guerrero, with 55 records, Morelos, with 35 records, and Baja California Sur, with 30 records. Loxoscelesrufescens (Dufour, 1820), an introduced species, is recorded for the second time in Mexico, from the state of Chihuahua, being the first well-documented record for the country. Mexico has the greatest diversity of species of Loxosceles worldwide, with 39 (two introduced species) of the 134 described species. Additionally, biogeographical comments for the species from Mexico are provided.

Expression of KATP channels in human cervical cancer: Potential tools for diagnosis and therapy.

Various ion channels, including ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels, are expressed in cancer and have been suggested as potential tumor markers and therapeutic targets. KATP channels are composed of at least two types of subunit, an inwardly rectifying K+ channel (Kir6.x) and a sulfonylurea receptor (SUR). However, the association between KATP channels and cervical cancer remains elusive. The present study determined that the Kir6.2, SUR1 and SUR2 subunits are expressed in cervical cancer cell lines and/or human biopsies. The potential association of subunit expression with tumor differentiation and invasion was analyzed. The effect of the KATP channel blocker glibenclamide on the proliferation of cervical cancer cell lines was also studied. Five cervical cancer cell lines, two primary cultures of cervical cancer cells, one normal keratinocyte cell line and 74 human biopsies were used in the experiments. The mRNA and protein levels of the Kir6.2 subunit were assessed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and immunochemistry, respectively. Cell proliferation was evaluated by MTT assay. Kir6.2 subunit overexpression compared with control, was observed in some cervical cancer cell lines and cervical tumor tissues. Additionally, increased KATP channel expression was observed in high-grade, poorly differentiated and invasive human cervical cancer biopsies. Kir6.2 subunit expression was not observed in the majority of the non-cancerous cervical tissues. The effect of the KATP channel blocker glibenclamide on the proliferation of five different cervical cancer cell lines was studied, revealing that as Kir6.2 mRNA expression increased, the inhibitory effect of glibenclamide also increased. The results of the present study suggest, for the first time to the best of our knowledge, that the KATP channel subunits, Kir6.2 and SUR2, could potentially represent tools for diagnosing and treating cervical cancer.

Efficacy of a Behavioral Activation Teletherapy Intervention to Treat Depression and Anxiety in Primary Care VitalSign6 Program.

OBJECTIVE: Research analyzing behavioral activation (BA) teletherapy outcomes is limited. Among low-income real-world primary care patients receiving a brief BA teletherapy program for depression and anxiety, we analyzed descriptive statistics and changes in depression and anxiety scores throughout treatment. METHODS: One hundred thirty patients completed an intake assessment from June 2015 to August 2016; outcomes included the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). Data from 74 low-income, primary care patients completing at least one therapy session were analyzed to characterize the demographics of therapy patients, to describe their depression and anxiety symptoms throughout treatment, and to examine whether patients who completed 4 or more sessions had statistically lower exit scores than those completing fewer than 4. RESULTS: Patients were moderately depressed (PHQ-9 score: mean = 14.46) and anxious (GAD-7 score: mean = 11.91) at intake. Patients were predominantly Latino/Latina (68.9%), Spanish-speaking (54.0%), and female (79.7%). The majority of patients who received at least one therapy session achieved and sustained depression remission. Patients who completed ≥ 4 therapy sessions demonstrated lower final session depression (PHQ-9: mean = 5.13, SD = 4.75) and anxiety (GAD-7: mean = 4.77, SD = 4.21) scores compared to those completing < 4 sessions (PHQ-9: mean = 8.04, SD = 6.20, P = .029; GAD-7: mean = 8.00, SD = 6.02, P = .011). CONCLUSIONS: Primary care patients demonstrated improvements in depressive and anxious symptoms throughout BA-based teletherapy. BA teletherapy is feasible and associated with improved outcomes as an adjunct or alternative intervention for primary care providers and in low-income, charity populations.​.

Validación de la escala UWES-9 en profesionales de la salud en México / Validation of the UWES-9 Scale in Mexican Health Professionals / Validação da escala UWES-9 em profissionais da saúde no México

Objetivo. Examinar las propiedades psicométricas de la escala breve del engagement o entusiasmo laboral en el trabajo (UWES-9) en comparación con la escala original (UWES-15), en una muestra de profesionales de la salud en México. Método. Se aplicaron las escalas UWES-15 y UWES-9 a una muestra de 475 profesionales del sector salud de México, pertenecientes al Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (n = 249) y la Secretaría de Salud (n = 226). Resultados. Los resultados del análisis factorial confirmatorio multigrupo confirmaron la estructura trifactorial (vigor, dedicación y absorción) de ambas escalas. Además, la UWES-9 mostró índices de ajuste significativamente mejores que los obtenidos en la versión larga, siendo la estructura invariante en ambas instituciones. Conclusión. Se confirma la validez de la medida breve de la escala UWES en profesionales de la salud mexicanos.

Objective. To examine the psychometric properties of the short scale of engagement at work (UWES-9) compared to the original scale (UWES-15) in a sample of health professionals in Mexico. Method. The UWES-15 and UWES-9 scales were applied in a sample of 475 professionals who belonged to two health institutions in Mexico: Mexican Institute of Social Security (n = 249) and Secretary of Health (n = 226). Results. The results from the MultiGroup Confirmatory Factor Analyses confirmed the three-factorial structure (vigor, dedication and absorption) in both scales. In addition, the UWES-9 showed rates of adjustment significantly better to those obtained in the long version, being the structure invariant in both institutions. Conclusion. The validity of the short measure of the UWES in Mexican health professionals is confirmed.

Escopo. Examinar as propriedades psicométricas da escala breve do engagement ou entusiasmo laboral no trabalho (UWES-9) em comparação com a escala original (UWES-15) numa amostra de profissionais da saúde no México. Metodologia. Foi aplicada a escala UWES-15 e a UWES-9 numa amostra de 475 profissionais do setor saúde do México pertencente ao Instituto Mexicano do Seguro Social (n= 249) e Ministério de Saúde (n=226). Resultados. Os resultados da Análise Fatorial Confirmatório Multi-Grupo confirmaram a estrutura tri-fatorial (vigor, dedicação e absorção) de ambas escalas. Além, a UWES-9 mostrou índices de ajuste significativamente melhores que os obtidos na versão longa, sendo a estrutura invariante em ambas instituições. Conclusão. Foi confirmada a validez da medida breve da escala UWES em profissionais da saúde mexicanos.

Ion Channels and Oxidative Stress as a Potential Link for the Diagnosis or Treatment of Liver Diseases.

Oxidative stress results from a disturbed balance between oxidation and antioxidant systems. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) may be either harmful or beneficial to the cells. Ion channels are transmembrane proteins that participate in a large variety of cellular functions and have been implicated in the development of a variety of diseases. A significant amount of the available drugs in the market targets ion channels. These proteins have sulfhydryl groups of cysteine and methionine residues in their structure that can be targeted by ROS and RNS altering channel function including gating and conducting properties, as well as the corresponding signaling pathways associated. The regulation of ion channels by ROS has been suggested to be associated with some pathological conditions including liver diseases. This review focuses on understanding the role and the potential association of ion channels and oxidative stress in liver diseases including fibrosis, alcoholic liver disease, and cancer. The potential association between ion channels and oxidative stress conditions could be used to develop new treatments for major liver diseases.