B-cell activation by crosslinking of surface IgM or ligation of CD40 involves alternative signal pathways and results in different B-cell phenotypes.

Treatment of small resting B cells with soluble F(ab')2 fragments of anti-IgM, an analogue of T-independent type 2 antigens, induced activation characterized by proliferation and the expression of surface CD5. In contrast, B cells induced to proliferate in response to thymus-dependent inductive signals provided by either fixed activated T-helper 2 cells or soluble CD40 ligand-CD8 (CD40L) recombinant protein displayed elevated levels of CD23 (Fc epsilon II receptor) and no surface CD5. Treatment with anti-IgM and CD40L induced higher levels of proliferation and generated a single population of B cells coexpressing minimal amounts of CD5 and only a slight elevation of CD23. Anti-IgM- but not CD40L-mediated activation was highly sensitive to inhibition by cyclosporin A and FK520. Sp-cAMPS, an analogue of cAMP, augmented CD40L and suppressed surface IgM-mediated activation. Taken together these results are interpreted to mean that there is a single population of small resting B cells that can respond to either T-independent type 2 (surface IgM)- or T-dependent (CD40)-mediated activation. In response to different intracellular signals these cells are induced to enter alternative differentiation pathways.

La educación primaria en los campos de la provincia de Buenos Aires (1943-1955)

El artículo se ocupa de las políticas educativas dirigidas al ámbito rural. El objetivo es caracterizar las escuelas primarias en la campaña bonaerense y examinar las demandas, la legislación y los proyectos que tuvieron lugar en relación con dichas escuelas durante el primer Peronismo. Se utiliza una metodología cualitativa que toma como fuentes de información normativas, discursos, estadísticas y proyectos de reformas. Se concluye que, si bien las demandas materiales dieron lugar a planes que en la mayor parte de los casos se concretaron, las peticiones para atender a la especificidad de la escuela rural fueron más difíciles de efectivizar

Capacity-building through English language training to improve long-term resettlement success: A case study of the refugees along the Thailand-Burma border

Achieving long-term resettlement success is a challenge for many refugees seeking to restart their lives after displacement and being uprooted from their lives. Refugees must deal with finding employment, integrating into a society immensely different from what they have known their whole lives, and starting over from scratch. Learning a new language enables refugees to progress towards integration and long-term resettlement success, however, resettled refugees face a multitude of barriers in the U.S. to accessing language classes and attaining English proficiency. This study seeks to bridge this problem by exploring the possibilities of implementing a standardized language training program in the refugee camps to better prepare refugees for resettlement. A case study of the refugees along the Thai-Burma border demonstrated the significance of learning English in the camps on eventual English proficiency as well as the need for increased partnerships to overcome the barriers of lack of motivation and lack of funding. The author explores the possibilities of implementing a language training program in the camps by determining need, interest, barriers, and perceptions through the use of interviews, surveys, and focus groups of camp refugees, resettled refugees, and key organizational representatives. The significance of these results offers the possibility of leveraging and unlocking resettlement as a durable solution for more of the world's refugees in protracted situations.

New Middle East Cold War: Saudi Arabia and Iran's Rivalry

The competing powers of Saudi Arabia and Iran continue to redress and reverse the strategic imbalance and direction of the Middle East’s regional politics. The 1979 Iranian Revolution catapulted these two states into an embittered rivalry. The fall of Saddam Hussein following the 2003 U.S. led invasion, the establishment of a Shi’ite Iraq and the 2011 Arab Uprisings have further inflamed tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Iran and Saudi Arabia have not confronted each other militarily, but rather have divided the region into two armed camps on the basis of political and religious ideology in seeking regional allies and promulgating sectarianism as they continue to exploit the region’s weak states in a series of proxy wars ranging from conflicts in Iraq to Lebanon. The Saudi-Iranian strategic and geopolitical rivalry is further complicated by a religious and ideological rivalry, as tensions represent two opposing aspirations for Islamic leadership with two vastly differing political systems. The conflict is between Saudi Arabia, representing Sunni Islam via Wahhabism, and Iran, representing Shi’ite Islam through Khomeinism. The nature of the Saudi-Iranian rivalry has led many Middle East experts to identify their rivalry as a “New Middle East Cold War.” The Saudi-Iranian rivalry has important implications for regional stability and U.S. national security interests. Therefore, this thesis seeks to address the question: Is a cold war framework applicable when analyzing the Saudi Arabian and Iranian relationship?

Denver Bible Institute under the leadership of Clifton L. Fowler

"Denver Bible Institute, founded in 1914, became a Bible College in 1945 and subsequently renamed Rockmont College..."

Looking Back: A Granddaughter's Quest for Redemption and Understanding

On December 7th, 1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. This event signaled the beginning of America's involvement in World War II. It also signaled the beginning of a change of life for the Japanese living in the United States. Following the attack, 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry were placed in ten internment camps across the United States. Two-thirds of those interned were American citizens, including my grandmother. The fact that these American citizens were treated as prisoners in their own country had a devastating effect on the relationships of those interned and the generations of Japanese Americans that followed. This essay recounts my grandma's experience and explores how her internment changed her life and the lives of her descendants.

Influencia de las medidas queratométricas en el cálculo de la potencia de lentes intraoculares

Índice, resumen, conclusiones y bibliografía de la memoria del Máster en Optometría Clínica y Visión, Programa formativo en Biomedicina y Tecnologías para la vida.

Elaboración de las guías docentes de segundo curso del Grado en Óptica y Optometría

En el marco del proyecto de Redes de Investigación en Docencia Universitaria 2010-11 de la Universidad de Alicante se creó una red de trabajo formada por los profesores encargados de la docencia del segundo curso de Grado en Óptica y Optometría. El objetivo principal de esta red ha sido la elaboración de las guías docentes de las asignaturas que constituyen dicho curso, así como la coordinación de las actividades docentes de las mismas. Para ello, se debatieron las propuestas de las diferentes asignaturas, en lo que respecta a evaluación continua y evaluación de competencias transversales, y se estableció un cronograma global del curso, ubicando las actividades docentes presenciales y aquellas que contribuyen con un peso determinado a la calificación final. Con este cronograma se pudo visualizar la carga de trabajo del alumno semanalmente, así como debatir las dificultades a las que se enfrenta para superar las diversas pruebas de evaluación continua en una determinada asignatura y cómo éstas afectan al rendimiento del resto de asignaturas.

Clinical validation of an algorithm to correct the error in the keratometric estimation of corneal power for normal eyes

To validate clinically an algorithm for correcting the error in the keratometric estimation of corneal power by using a variable keratometric index of refraction (nk) in a normal healthy population.

Collyria seals in the Roman Empire

Roman seals associated with collyria (Latin expression for eye drops /washes and lotions for eye maintenance) provide valuable information about eye care in the antiquity. These small, usually stone-made pieces bore engravings with the names of eye doctors and also the collyria used to treat an eye disease. The collyria seals have been found all over the Roman empire and Celtic territories in particular and were usually associated with military camps. In Hispania (Iberian Peninsula), only three collyria seals have been found. These findings speak about eye care in this ancient Roman province as well as about of the life of the time. This article takes a look at the utility and social significance of the collyria seals and seeks to give an insight in the ophthalmological practice of in the Roman Empire.

Minimizing the IOL Power Error Induced by Keratometric Power

Purpose. To evaluate theoretically in normal eyes the influence on IOL power (PIOL) calculation of the use of a keratometric index (nk) and to analyze and validate preliminarily the use of an adjusted keratometric index (nkadj) in the IOL power calculation (PIOLadj). Methods. A model of variable keratometric index (nkadj) for corneal power calculation (Pc) was used for IOL power calculation (named PIOLadj). Theoretical differences ($PIOL) between the new proposed formula (PIOLadj) and which is obtained through Gaussian optics (PIOL Gauss) were determined using Gullstrand and Le Grand eye models. The proposed new formula for IOL power calculation (PIOLadj) was prevalidated clinically in 81 eyes of 81 candidates for corneal refractive surgery and compared with Haigis, HofferQ, Holladay, and SRK/T formulas. Results. A theoretical PIOL underestimation greater than 0.5 diopters was present in most of the cases when nk = 1.3375 was used. If nkadj was used for Pc calculation, a maximal calculated error in $PIOL of T0.5 diopters at corneal vertex in most cases was observed independently from the eye model, r1c, and the desired postoperative refraction. The use of nkadj in IOL power calculation (PIOLadj) could be valid with effective lens position optimization nondependent of the corneal power. Conclusions. The use of a single value of nk for Pc calculation can lead to significant errors in PIOL calculation that may explain some IOL power overestimations with conventional formulas. These inaccuracies can be minimized by using the new PIOLadj based on the algorithm of nkadj.

Algorithm for Correcting the Keratometric Error in the Estimation of the Corneal Power in Eyes With Previous Myopic Laser Refractive Surgery

Purpose: To calculate theoretically the errors in the estimation of corneal power when using the keratometric index (nk) in eyes that underwent laser refractive surgery for the correction of myopia and to define and validate clinically an algorithm for minimizing such errors. Methods: Differences between corneal power estimation by using the classical nk and by using the Gaussian equation in eyes that underwent laser myopic refractive surgery were simulated and evaluated theoretically. Additionally, an adjusted keratometric index (nkadj) model dependent on r1c was developed for minimizing these differences. The model was validated clinically by retrospectively using the data from 32 myopic eyes [range, −1.00 to −6.00 diopters (D)] that had undergone laser in situ keratomileusis using a solid-state laser platform. The agreement between Gaussian (PGaussc) and adjusted keratometric (Pkadj) corneal powers in such eyes was evaluated. Results: It was found that overestimations of corneal power up to 3.5 D were possible for nk = 1.3375 according to our simulations. The nk value to avoid the keratometric error ranged between 1.2984 and 1.3297. The following nkadj models were obtained: nkadj= −0.0064286r1c + 1.37688 (Gullstrand eye model) and nkadj = −0.0063804r1c + 1.37806 (Le Grand). The mean difference between Pkadj and PGaussc was 0.00 D, with limits of agreement of −0.45 and +0.46 D. This difference correlated significantly with the posterior corneal radius (r = −0.94, P < 0.01). Conclusions: The use of a single nk for estimating the corneal power in eyes that underwent a laser myopic refractive surgery can lead to significant errors. These errors can be minimized by using a variable nk dependent on r1c.

Seguimiento del Grado en Óptica y Optometría

En el marco del proyecto de Redes de Investigación en Docencia Universitaria 2013-14 de la Universidad de Alicante se creó una red de trabajo formada por los profesores coordinadores de semestre del Grado en Óptica y Optometría y dos alumnos. Dado que durante el curso académico 2013-14 ha tenido lugar la implantación del último curso del Grado en Óptica y Optometría, el objetivo principal de esta red ha sido la realización de un análisis de la implantación del título así como el estudio del diseño y desarrollo del Trabajo Fin de Grado y del programa de Prácticas Externas. Para ello se han recogido las sugerencias y propuestas realizadas a través de las comisiones de semestres, de la comisión de garantía de calidad y de reuniones con el alumnado, con el fin de optimizar el funcionamiento del título, tanto en la distribución de contenidos, como en las metodologías docentes y de evaluación de las distintas materias que componen el plan de estudios.

Trabajo de coordinación para la implantación del Máster en Optometría Avanzada y Salud Visual

Durante el curso 2013-2014 la Universidad de Alicante ha propuesto la implantación del Master en Optometría Avanzada y Salud Visual, dicha solicitud está siendo actualmente evaluada por la ANECA. Con el fin de coordinar la docencia de este Máster y dentro del Proyecto de Redes de Investigación en Docencia Universitaria 2013-2014, se ha creado una red formada por todos los profesores que han participado en la elaboración del plan de estudios. En esta red esta red se pretende la coordinación entre las distintas asignaturas para elaborar las guías docentes a partir de los datos de las fichas enviadas a la ANECA. Por otra parte también se ha modificado la memoria atendiendo a las alegaciones realizadas por la ANECA. Y se han desarrollado los contenidos, la metodología de las distintas actividades propuestas con el fin de asegurar la consecución de las competencias previstas.