The Pandemic in Latin America and the challenges of Human Rights

The purpose of the present study is to know the impacts of Covid19 on the structures of governmental institutions in Latin America and the effects on Human Rights in terms of health and education, for example. For the analysis, we consider some elements such as the functioning of political parties, the arbitrariness of power, fiscal transparency and public spending, allowing us to take a picture of the reality to be studied regarding the quality of democracy in these countries, and also considering the cooperation efforts, in the normative and institutional scopes inside and out. As we seek to relate Human Rights and Democracy, we focus on the ethical dimension of the new challenges facing Latin America. The exposition, sometimes detailed, of situations that illustrate the malfunctioning of institutions came from observation and review of a diverse literature, and from different perspectives specifically in the scope of International Relations. © 2022, UNIV CARLOSIII MADRID. All rights reserved.

Native Cerrado vegetation is a haven for birds on the current trajectory of climate change

Resumo A mudanca climatica ja e vista como uma das maiores ameacas a biodiversidade no seculo XXI. Poucos estudos direcionam a atencAo para seus efeitos em comunidades inteiras de hotspots ameacados. Neste trabalho, combinamos a modelagem de nicho climatico (ENM) com um futuro cenario climatico de emissoes de gases de efeito estufa para estudar as futuras mudancas na diversidade alfa e beta das aves do bioma Cerrado brasileiro, um hotspot da biodiversidade com alta velocidade de mudanca climatica e expansAo agricola. Esperavamos que o sul do Cerrado (altamente modificado) apresentasse a maioria das mudancas negativas. Em geral, encontramos resultados heterogeneos para mudancas na riqueza de especies, na diversidade beta taxonomica e funcional espacial e temporal, e na diferenciacAo ecologica media. Analisamos 1301 aves, 1115 Menos Preocupantes, 83 Quase Ameacadas, 63 Vulneraveis, 33 Em Perigo, cinco Criticamente em Perigo e duas Extintas na natureza. Ao contrario de um estudo anterior sobre mamiferos do Cerrado, espera-se que a riqueza de especies aumente no norte do Cerrado, onde a homogeneizacAo das comunidades (diminuicAo da rotatividade espacial) tambem deve ocorrer especialmente atraves de invasoes locais. Mostramos que a homogeneizacAo biotica crescente (similaridade entre as comunidades) ocorrera em dois grupos biologicos, mas atraves de subprocessos diferentes: extincoes locais para mamiferos e invasoes locais para aves. Acoes distintas de manejo da conservacAo devem ser direcionadas dependendo dos resultados das analises de diversidade alfa e beta espacial e temporal, por exemplo, controlando invasoes de especies no norte do Cerrado. Tambem mostramos prioridades em nivel de especies para as aves do Cerrado. Os estudos de conservacAo devem continuar estudando o Cerrado no Brasil mesmo durante a pandemia de covid, pois a situacAo ambiental no pais nAo e boa e os incentivos para estudos cientificos sAo quase inexistentes. Tambem consideramos que o norte do Cerrado poderia ser visto como um refugio potencial para outros grupos de organismos (morcegos, borboletas, sapos etc.). Portanto, e crucial que os tomadores de decisAo tomem medidas ambiciosas de conservacAo.

The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste

BACKGROUND: Lack of access to diagnostic testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can limit disease surveillance in remote areas. Serological surveillance can indicate the true extent and distribution of infections in such settings. METHODS: This study monitored SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in residual serum samples salvaged from laboratories at five healthcare facilities across Timor-Leste from March to October 2021. RESULTS: Seroprevalence increased from 8.3% to 87.0% during the study period. Potential immunity gaps were identified among children aged 0-15 y (who had not been eligible for vaccination) and individuals aged >60 y. CONCLUSIONS: Efforts to vaccinate vulnerable individuals including older people should be maintained. Residual serum samples can be analysed to give local, contemporary information about the extent and distribution of antibodies to infections, especially SARS-CoV-2, in areas where epidemiological information is limited.

CHINA'S TIANXIA AND FOREIGN POLICY IN THE PANDEMIC CONTEXT

The Covid-19 pandemic as a global threat has made it possible to gain a dynamic perspective on the behavior of States, and some light on the new international scenario. In this context, it has become clear that People's Republic of China (PRC) and the West are competitors in more than one area, and that it will be necessary to cooperate with the Asian giant for global stability/balance. In this article, we propose a retrospective (historical) look at the centralized State of China, and then characterize the current regime in that country. In the context of Chinese theories of International Relations, we propose to develop the concept of tianxia as a guide for the definition of a political strategy, considering the criticisms and limitations to the application of that same concept. Still in the pandemic context, we propose a reading of the political actions taken by the Chinese regime. The study of tianxia, whatever international scenario is set, may help us to understand some of the historical foundations of what PRC is today. © 2022, Observare. All rights reserved.

Teaching at Distance, a stress enhancing factor in higher education in times of COVID-19

In Portugal, as in the world, successive confinements have forced people to make numerous adaptations to life in society and online teaching. A year since the moment the 'world stopped', there were several studies and analyses everywhere and within the scientific community of all areas of knowledge. In this context, this article presents some reflections on how the teaching and learning process in distance learning occurred in a higher education institution (HEI). A questionnaire survey was conducted on 101 of the 158 professors who teach at the Polytechnic Institute of Guarda. This analysis deals mainly with the use of technologies in teaching to understand the impact of the pandemic on teachers' work in the context of online education and whether this has increased stress and working hours, seeking to establish some correlations such as gender, age or family situation. The results obtained show a great capacity of teachers to adapt to this new reality despite doubts and concerns at the beginning of the process. Other relevant aspects of this study point to the increase in work resulting from the need for more time to prepare classes, the adaptation of teaching materials, and reformulate the way the contents were taught. © 2021 IEEE.

Trichomonas vaginalis and growing concern over drug resistance: a systematic review.

In the late 90s, a sharp increase of treatment failures of Trichomonas vaginalis (TV) infections with metronidazole (MTZ) was reported, representing a problem due to limited treatment options. We proposed to review the available evidence on the frequency of MTZ resistance by TV isolates and the relationship between treatment failure and in vitro resistance to MTZ. A systematic review based on the PRISMA guidelines was conducted by searching published studies in three different databases (PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science) up to December 2020. The extracted studies were uploaded to Covidence software; screening was guided based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Additionally, different articles were included through other sources. For each article, study design, objectives, study population and key outcomes were summarized. We found 403 references from the databases and four extra studies. After duplicate removal and screening of title, abstract and full text, 27 studies were included. The selected studies were published between 1983 and 2019; all except one addressed only vaginal TV infection. We identified four major populations in vitro MTZ resistance: two studies evaluated female adolescents; other two assessed HIV-positive women. Fifteen studies considered MTZ resistance in newly diagnosed vaginal TV infection. Finally, eight articles studied in vitro susceptibility of isolates from women with clinical resistant trichomoniasis. High level of in vitro MTZ resistance was rare; low-moderate level was described in most of the cases. Although clinical resistance to MTZ of trichomoniasis was widely reported, there was a paucity of prospective controlled studies. Our review unveiled the need to standardize susceptibility testing, to define breakpoints for detection of MTZ-resistant isolates and to correlate with clinical outcome. It is important to establish criteria to define clinical resistance to MTZ. Such a consensus would foster the development of surveillance studies about clinical and microbiological response to MTZ treatment.

Analysis of a portuguese hei teachers experience in the context of covid-19

The current context of the pandemic crisis has led to unexpected educational changes. It has forced the institutions to rapidly adapt their teaching and learning methodologies in all areas, especially in higher education. This situation, atypical, has given rise to numerous reflections on the ability of institutions to adapt to this new paradigm. This research aims to understand how the Portuguese Higher Education Institution (Polytechnic of Guarda) teachers have adjusted their teaching and learning process to distance learning situation. We constructed a quantitative investigation with a survey applied to the population, consisting of 158 elements, achieving 102 valid answers, 65% of the population. The results show that despite the initial doubts and concerns at the beginning of the process, there was always a substantial increase in work volume. There was a rapid adaptation to new teaching and learning methodologies in COVID-19 time. Overall, most of the inquiries considered this distance learning experience to be very positive. © 2021 North Caucasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, State Technological University. All rights reserved.

Long form or microcontent? An analysis of supports for digital content courseware

The use of digital educational resources has expanded considerably, including in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the educational materials used in these resources, the Microcontent (MC) format predominates, with its fragmented and small information units. So, we ask: can the LongForm (LF) format, which allows the presentation of dense and extensive content, be a viable alternative to MC, when applied to complex educational content, specific to undergraduate courses? The LF, hypothetically, can offer better support for higher distance education courses. To answer the question, an educational activity, elaborated in both formats, was applied to 67 students from a university of Minas Gerais state, in Brazil. The observation of student activity revealed their preferences: MC has shown to be good for building learning with smaller materials in both size and content complexity, but LF was more appropriated when dealing with complex, dense, multimedia-requiring contents to facilitate understanding. It was confirmed that the LF presents itself as a viable alternative for online studying because it is constituted by a single virtual space where larger texts and varied multimedia resources can be inserted to enrich the educational material and to offer the full content for students. © 2021 Universidad de Murcia. All rights reserved.

Mental health of university professors in times of covid-19

This essay, based on the literature on the subject, aims to reflect on events related to the work process that compromise the mental health of Higher Education Institutions' (HEI) professors in times of covid-19. The lack of skill in handling information and communication technology for the undertaking of professional assignments, the act of demanding too much from oneself and the pressure from the HEI to adapt to the new work model, as well as the need to manage work and household chores are events that predispose to psycho-emotional suffering in higher education teachers.

Social and health implications that affect people bereaved by the death of family members by COVID-19

Objective: to know the social and health implications that affect people bereaved by the death of relatives who were victims of COVID-19. Method: this is a narrative review carried out on the PubCovid-19 platform. Results: a chart was developed presenting the characteristics of the ten publications by title, authorship, year of publication, country and journal. Conclusion: the social and health implications that affect people bereaved by the death of family members by COVID-19 derive from the social distancing that generates the impossibility of performing farewell rituals, damaging the normal experience of mourning, leading to complicated mourning and possible psychic illness. © 2020 Universidade Federal da Bahia. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 and chronic diseases: Impacts and developments before the pandemic

Objective: to reflect on the high risk of complications of COVID-19 in people with chronic non-communicable diseases, as well as the possible consequences for those affected by the disease. Method: narrative review, developed based on articles published in journals and documents of official national agencies. Results: the study allowed the reflection about the vulnerability of people with chronic diseases in the context of the new coronavirus pandemic, as well as the impacts to this population. This scenario substantially impacts health services, and highlights the need for a differentiated attention regarding the prevention measures. Conclusion: the current scenario presents itself with many challenges for the population, which requires self-care actions and meetings preventive measures aimed at the individual and collective safety. © 2020 Universidade Federal da Bahia. All rights reserved.