Methodology for Virtual Education of Clinical Engineering through the Implementation of Digital Tools for Simulated Scenarios and International Collaboration

The Covid-19 global pandemic has represented a challenge for education, which had to migrate to virtual environments. Universities adopted different teaching methods to keep contributing to the growth of the professionals in various fields. In this context, the Biomedical Engineering program of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru and the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia had to change or adapt the methodology of the courses included in its curriculum in order to reach the learning objectives. This paper presents a methodology for an innovative approach of simulated scenarios using digital tools for the virtual teaching of Clinical Engineering. The learning results achieved in two semesters of implementation of the methodology, during 2020 and 2021, were measured by means of a survey applied to the students at the end of the course. Obtaining achievement results above 76 % and improvement opportunities that would be useful for the next version of this course and for the replication of the methodology in other universities. © 2023 IEEE.

Strategy for the reactivation of tourism in Mexico;Evidence of the use of saliva pools for the detection of COVID-19 in a tourist resort

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a decrease in tourism activity. This has caused huge losses to the tourism industry, so different approaches have been devised for economic reactivation. This article aims to provide a novel strategy for mass molecular monitoring of clinically healthy individuals, and also including potentially asymptomatic carriers of SARS-CoV-2, who traveled to a tourist resort The monitoring consisted of collecting individual saliva samples (n=120) and conforming groups of 10 samples, thus setting 12 individual pools, which were analyzed by qRT-PCR. Obtained data showed that all the samples analyzed were negative, thus confirming that no individuals were infected with SARS-CoV-2 before and during the travel. The proposed molecular protocol allowed the analysis of massive saliva samples and detect individual infected persons (negative or positive). protocol for evaluate massive event, thus promoting the economic activation of the tourism industry.

Ex vivo treatment with fucoidan of mononuclear cells from SARS-CoV-2 infected patients.

COVID-19 is a worldwide health emergency, therapy for this disease is based on antiviral drugs and immunomodulators, however, there is no treatment to effectively reduce the COVID-19 mortality rate. Fucoidan is a polysaccharide obtained from marine brown algae, with anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and immune-enhancing properties, thus, fucoidan may be used as an alternative treatment (complementary to prescribed medical therapy) for the recovery of COVID-19.  This work aimed to determine the effects of ex-vivo treatment with fucoidan on cytotoxicity, apoptosis, necrosis, and senescence, besides functional parameters of calcium flux and mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells isolated from SARS-CoV-2 infected, recovered and healthy subjects. Data suggest that fucoidan does not exert cytotoxicity or senescence, however, it induces the increment of intracellular calcium flux. Additionally, fucoidan promotes recovery of ΔΨm in PBMCs from COVID-19 recovered females. Data suggest that fucoidan could ameliorate the immune response in COVID-19 patients.

The COVID-19 pandemic from the multidisciplinary vision of 28 University Professors of Nayarit, Mexico

Abstract: This document is a paper of multidisciplinary academic opinion of 27 professors and researchers of the Autonomous University of Nayarit, Mexico. In the manuscript, the pandemic of the COVID-19 disease is approached from different perspectives, with the aim to approach this great problem that has paralyzed humanity in the beginning of the year 2020 in an interdisciplinary form (thus many of the research problems should be approached), on the other hand, with the aim to prove all the academic potential that Mexican public universities hold to respond to society. Professors of history, biology, medicine, biomedicine, nutrition, social sciences, law, psychology, economy, tourism, political sciences, education, communication media, engineering, technological innovation, and intellectual property take part in this paper. This document represents a groundbreaking exercise in the Autonomous University of Nayarit and performing multidisciplinary work is, perhaps, one of the major lesson and message that the pandemic of COVID-19 will leave us.