Enseñanza y aprendizaje del Diseño Gráfico desde el paradigma de la complejidad / Teaching and learning Graphic Design from the paradigm of complexity

Resumen Los modelos pedagógicos articulados en las instituciones educativas cumplen un papel fundamental. A través de ellos, deben contemplar el papel de los actores del proceso, el enfoque curricular, la evaluación y demás aspectos relevantes para el desarrollo de la enseñanza y aprendizaje. Este artículo presenta un análisis y descripción de la relación que existe entre el modelo pedagógico institucional propuesto por la Universidad de Boyacá, Colombia, basado en el pensamiento complejo del filósofo y sociólogo francés Edgar Morin, y el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje en relación con las clases de taller del programa académico de Diseño Gráfico. El estudio se desarrolló desde un corte cualitativo, con el enfoque de investigación holística en el que se trabajó la fase descriptiva y analítica, a través de la recolección de información, por medio de instrumentos como la observación no participante, diario de campo, encuestas y entrevistas dirigidas a los estudiantes y docentes, registros de clases de taller, lectura y contraste de documentos institucionales y propios del programa. A partir de estas perspectivas, se orienta epistemológicamente la coherencia del modelo pedagógico con la enseñanza y aprendizaje del Diseño Gráfico y cómo se lleva a cabo en la práctica. De esta manera, el estudio concluye que la enseñanza del diseño, vista desde la complejidad, aporta significativamente en el proceso de aprendizaje y evidencia características positivas para los futuros diseñadores, como el momento de la evaluación y el ejercicio de enfrentar a los estudiantes a la incertidumbre y problemas reales del contexto.

Abstract Within the framework of education, many necessary components are promulgated to respond to the requirements requested by government entities. Therefore, institutions must adjust their policies and institutional plans so that they increasingly articulate these postulates and can guarantee an education with quality and in constant improvement. The pedagogical models created and articulated in educational institutions, in preschool, elementary, secondary, middle and higher education, play a fundamental role, since this represents the formal information of how is taught and learned in each educational institution. The model includes: the role of the actors in the teaching and learning process; teachers and students, the curricular approach, purposes of the training process, learning strategies, evaluation, and other relevant aspects to fulfill the mission and vision of the university. The following article presents an analysis and description of the relationship between the institutional pedagogical model proposed by the University of Boyacá, which is based on the complex thinking of Edgar Morin and the teaching and learning process during classes in the area projector workshop of the academic program of Graphic Design. This study was developed from a qualitative methodological process, under a holistic research approach. The descriptive and analytical phase was worked through the collection of information by means of instruments such as non-participant observation, field diary, surveys and interviews directed to students and teachers, records of workshop classes, reading of primary sources and contrast of formal institutional documents and those of the program and the university. Two softwares were used for the analysis and description of all the information, the first one was Atlas.ti 8.0 to identify in the interviews applied to the students and the teachers, codes in vivo (codes that are generated literally from expressions of the informants) or abstract (code that represents a theoretical postulate or experience exposed by the informants). Subsequently, the SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) software was used to tabulate and systematize all the information collected in the surveys applied to teachers and students. According to the methodology developed and seeing it from the epistemological perspectives in relation to the nature of the research, finally the study showed that the institutional pedagogical model is partially articulated to the teaching and learning processes of the Graphic Design program. This is shown in practical workshops and it has permeated the students since their initial training and the other part of the training process, thus seeking to respond to the purposes of the Institutional Educational Projects of the University of Boyacá. Finally, the study concludes that the teaching of design seen from the paradigm of complexity contributes significantly to the learning process, since positive characteristics were evidenced that contribute significantly to the training of future designers. For example, letting students confront uncertainty processes from the academy through different exercises prepares them for any problem that may arise in their working life, where real contexts and environments will be involved. Design should look for possible solutions from the graphic discipline. Likewise, it is important to keep in mind that the designer not only generates beautiful pieces, but is a subject that is related to the visual problems of context and society, therefore it was also observed that students act as integral human beings and not only with purely professional aspects.

Novel Nitrobenzazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium Salts Induce Cell Death through a Mechanism Involving DNA Damage, Cell Cycle Changes, and Mitochondrial Permeabilization.

This study reports the capacity of three nitro substituted benzazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium salts NBQs: NBQ 95 (NSC-763304), NBQ 38 (NSC 763305), and NBQ 97 (NSC-763306) as potential antitumor agents. NBQ's are unnatural alkaloids possessing a positive charge that could facilitate interaction with cell organelles. The anticancer activities of these compounds were evaluated through the National Cancer Institute (NCI) 60 cell line screening which represents diverse histologies. The screening was performed at 10 µM on all cell lines. Results from the NCI screening indicated cytotoxicity activity on six cell lines. In order to explore a possible mechanism of action, a detailed biological activity study of NBQ 95 and NBQ 38 was performed on A431 human epidermoid carcinoma cells to determine an apoptotic pathway involving, cell cycle changes, DNA fragmentation, mutations, mitochondrial membrane permeabilization and caspases activation. DNA fragmentation, cell cycle effects, mutagenesis, mitochondrial permeabilization and activation of caspases were determined by fluorimetry and differential imaging. Our data showed that A431 growth was inhibited with an average IC50 of 30 µM. In terms of the mechanism, these compounds interacted with DNA causing fragmentation and cell cycle arrest at sub G0/G1 stage. Mutagenesis was higher for NBQ 38 and moderate for NBQ 95 Mitochon-drial permeabilization was observed with NBQ 38 and slightly for NBQ 95. Both compounds caused activation of Caspases 3 and 7 suggesting an apoptotic cell death pathway through an intrinsic mechanism. This study reports evidence of the toxicity of these novel compounds with overlapping structural and mechanistic similarities to ellipticine, a known anti-tumor compound.

Role of the nitro functionality in the DNA binding of 3-nitro-10-methylbenzothiazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium chloride.

Interest in DNA binding drugs has increased in recent years due to their importance in the treatment of genome-related diseases, like cancer. A new family of water-soluble DNA binding compounds, the benzothiazolo[3,2- a]quinolinium chlorides (BQCls), is studied here as potential candidates for chemical treatment of solid tumor cells that may encounter low-oxygen environments, a condition known as hypoxia. These compounds are good DNA intercalators; however, no studies have been made of these compounds under hypoxic conditions. This work demonstrates the importance of the nitro-functionality in the DNA binding of 3-nitro-10-methylbenzothiazolo[3,2- a]quinolinium chloride (NBQ-91), which possesses nitro-functionality, and 10-methylbenzothiazolo[3,2- a]quinolinium chloride (BQ-106), which does not. Both NBQ-91 and BQ-106 have similar noncovalent binding affinity toward DNA. Dialysis experiments show that NBQ-91 binds DNA under N2-saturated conditions with increasing concentrations of reducing agent, presumably due to reduction of the nitro-functionality. Conversely, because of the lack of nitro-functionality, the presence of a reducing agent had no effect on BQ-106 binding to DNA under both aerobic and N2-saturated conditions. Clonogenic assays were performed to determine the quinolinium chloride cytotoxicities under both aerobic (95% air and 5% CO2) and hypoxic (80% N2 and 20% CO2) conditions. The calculated ratios of cellular toxicity under aerobic to hypoxic conditions caused by the same concentration of test agent (CTR values) show greater levels of cell death under hypoxia than under aerobic conditions for mitomycin C (MC) (CTR = 0.7 at 1 microM) and NBQ-91 (CTR = 0.4 at 200 microM) than for BQ-106 (CTR = 1.0 at 200 microM), which agreed with the previously reported data for MC and confirmed the importance of nitro-functionality for reactivity under hypoxic conditions. There was no correlation between noncovalent binding affinity constants and their cytotoxicity under hypoxic conditions. Adduct formation between the NBQ-91 and 2'-dG was also assessed by reacting 2'-dG or DNA with NBQ-91 and BQ-106 under N2-saturated conditions in the presence of hypoxanthine and xanthine oxidase (HX/XO). DNA covalent adduct formation was analyzed by two techniques: LC-ESI-MS and Sephadex size exclusion chromatography. LC-ESI-MS results clearly indicate the formation of a prominent molecular ion at masses of 266.0 and 530.58 Da, corresponding to the [M + H](+2) and [M](+) molecular ions of the monitored 2'-dG-NBQ-91 adduct. Results from the Sephadex size exclusion chromatography support these findings because the NBQ-91 elution percentage increases in the presence of HX/XO due to the reduction of the nitro-functionality, which results in covalent binding to DNA. This study reports evidence of the DNA binding capacity of this bioreductive drug. The preferential N2-saturated over aerobic conditions for DNA binding makes NBQ-91 a potential bioreductive compound for hypoxic cell killing.

Comparison of the nucleic acid covalent binding capacity of two nitro-substituted benzazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium salts upon enzymatic reduction.

The DNA binding capacity of two nitro-substituted benzazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium chlorides (NBQs), NBQ-38 and NBQ-95, was evaluated upon their enzymatic reduction with hypoxanthine (HX)/xanthine oxidase (XO) under anaerobic conditions. In the presence of 2'-deoxyguanosine (2'-dG) or calf thymus DNA, covalent-addition products were monitored. Reactions of each NBQ with 2'-dG or DNA differed in the NBQ to HX molar ratio. Control reactions, one without HX/OX and another under aerobic conditions, were also analyzed. Adducts were isolated and characterized by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Authentic samples of the reduced forms of these NBQs, identified as ABQ-38 and ABQ-95, were synthesized as standards to monitor bioreduction processes. HPLC analysis showed that the yield of formation of an unknown product (possibly, 2'-dG-NHBQ-38 adduct) from the reaction of NBQ-38 with 2'-dG and DNA was proportional to the HX to NBQ-38 molar ratio. ESI-MS analysis of the DNA hydrolysates showed evidence of an adduct formed upon bioreduction of NBQ-38 by the ions detection at m/z 528.3 and 454.8, consistent with chemical structures of a 2'-dG-NHBQ-38 adduct and a fragment ion. DNA adducts were not observed with NBQ-95, although the corresponding bioreduction product ABQ-95 was detected by ESI-MS. This study provides mechanistic information of these bioreductively-activated pro-drugs with potential therapeutic applications.

Reductive activation and thiol reactivity of benzazolo[3,2-a]quinolinium salts.

Derivatives of benzazolo[3,2-a]quinolium salts (QSDs) are reductively activated by the enzymatic reducing agents hypoxanthine (or xanthine)/xanthine oxidase and NADH dehydrogenase as evidenced by the increase in rates of ferricytochrome c (Cyt(III)c) reduction and oxygen consumption, respectively. No correlation between Michaelis-Menten parameters and QSDs redox potentials was found regarding anaerobic or aerobic Cyt(III)c reduction, although maximum rates were observed for nitro-containing QSDs. However, oxygen consumption rates correlate with QSDs redox potentials when NADH dehydrogenase is used as reducing agent. QSDs bind covalently to bovine serum albumin (BSA) under anaerobic conditions, in the presence, and less in the absence, of HX/XO and only if the nitro group is present at the QSD. QSDs react with glutathione (GSH) in the presence of HX/XO but not in its absence, under anaerobic conditions. The amount of reacted GSH increases, and the relative amount of GSSG formed decreases, with an increase in the QSD reduction potential, thus indicating that GSH reacts with reduced nitro-containing QSDs mainly in a manner which does not involve the production of GSSG, presumably, through the formation of the nitroso-QSD-GSH conjugate. QSDs are, thus, novel nitro-containing heterocyclic compounds which could be bioreductively activated to react with oxygen and thiols.