Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Introduction:This study pretends to determine the vulnerability of sea turtle nesting areas in the western Cuban archipelago due to climate change and other threats.The objectives of this paper are: to estimate  the sex ratio in every season from   the temperature and the incubation period for the beaches analyzed, to evaluate the influence of the vegetation in the distribution of the nests and the embryonic development, to correlate the geomorphologic changes due to tropical storms in the Guanahacabibes peninsula with the reproductive success of the sea turtles and to document the impact generated by the accumulation of sargassum in the conduct and the reproductive success of the sea turtles.Methods: They were analyzed 21 sea turtle nesting seasons in the Guanahacabibes Peninsula.Results: It was observed an annual variation in the number of emergencies and nests per female with a well-defined biennial cycle. It was recorded a reduction in clutch size, incubation period and hatchling size. It was also estimated a higher production of females, as a consequence of the high incubation temperatures. In addition, they were monitored the dynamics of the beaches, finding important changes in the distribution and characteristics of the coastal vegetation as a result of meteorological events. They were determined areas vulnerable to coastal flooding and the impact of massive sargassum bursts. Conclusions: the evidence collected constitutes an alert for protected area managers in order to take measures aimed at mitigating the effects on the successful reproduction of sea turtles of high temperatures, meteorological events and other natural phenomena, such as sargassum bursts in the Cuban archipelago. Likewise, these results are an experience for other nesting areas in the Greater Caribbean region where they are exposed to similar threats.

Introduction: The nursing caring practices using the perspective of Public Health require the interdisciplinary approach. A development research was done in order to propose a theoretical and conceptual model which explains nursing practice under public Health approach.Methods: A Development- research was made as part of a national Project during the period of 2016- 2019. Theoretical workshops with professionals of different disciplines were organized in order to design the Model. A deductive approach was part of the design.  The model was applied in four projects for the empirical validation.Results: The definition of “Enfermería Salubrista” as an area of practice for this profession. The premises and philosophical references were defined (epistemological, ethics, aesthetics, ontological and axiological), the theoretical referents (concepts, definitions, affirmations and assumptions) from anthropology, sociology, psychology and communitarian nursing. The interdisciplinary assumptions and their relation with nursing practice through the Nursing Attention Process (methodology) were defined and also the aspect to take into account for the teaching in educational process. Conclusions: The model give references for the nursing caring practices as an interdisciplinary and sociocultural product in which the participants are active subjects because they provide knowledge to their relation since their own perspective of health. The model shows its applicability in the nursing practice of caring in different context.

Introduction: Segmentation is a fundamental process that partitions a data space into meaningful salient regions. Image segmentation essentially affects the overall performance of any automated image analysis system; thus, its quality is of the utmost importance. This is a complex process with a non-exact solution and is considered an open problem, where algorithmic development has been the backbone throughout its history. Achieving efficient and well-performing strategies determines the excellent performance of an artificial intelligence system. For this reason, the fundamental objective of this work was to obtain a set of algorithms capable of achieving optimal quality in the segmentation of images, and in particular in biomedical images, which by the physics of image formation have very particular characteristics. Methods: In this work, an experimental research method was used by using real images, and not simulated (through computers), which guaranteed that the developed algorithms took into account the physics of their formation and the capture mode. Therefore, all the used biomedical images were obtained from databases of Cuban healthcare centers, and from standardized international sources. In addition, the developed algorithms were fine-tuned through the quantitative-qualitative research method, selecting as true criteria the images outlined and evaluations carried out by the specialists. Results and discussion: The results obtained with the developed strategies, according to the specialists, evidenced their effectiveness and good performance, where it should be noted that all were original ideas (autochthonous) that met the aim of achieving optimal segmentation, being able to distinguish clearly and precisely the objects or patterns that the specialists needed to accentuate. This made it possible to carry out a subsequent, simpler analysis of the pathologies associated with these bioimages. It is concluded that the proposed algorithms are original (autochthonous) and meet the aim of achieving optimal segmentation, where one can clearly and accurately distinguish the patterns that specialists need to highlight for the subsequent analysis of images.

Introduction: The objective of this paper is to analyze the behavior of the scientific production of Cuban authors in SciELO Citation Index and in Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) from 2014 to 2018. Methods: A quantitative research of descriptive type is presented, with bibliometric indicators supported by information compilation, the classic documentary analysis and the use of informatics tools to visualize the results. Results and discussions: 11 137 contributions were recovered from SciELO Citation Index and 8 470 from Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). Bibliometric indicators of productivity and collaboration are applied, which allow for characterizing the Cuban scientific production. It is concluded that the analyzed sample ratifies the leading role of the Cuban universities and that of the medical sciences as the most outstanding topic. The Spanish language and the Cuban scientific journals stand out like preferences for the national researchers to publish their results.

Introduction: Schwannomas are encapsulated tumors that originate in the Schwann cells of the cranial nerves, being the most affected the VIII cranial nerve.Objective: to expose the characteristics of a case with vestibular Schwannoma detected early in the otorhinolaryngology consultation.Clinical case: We present the case of a 44-year-old male patient who went to the otolaryngology clinic with an 8-year history of gait instability, vertigo, progressive hearing loss and tinnitus in the left ear. It was performed physical examination, normal otoscopy, Romberg, Babinski and Unterberger test with lateralization to the left. They were performed audiological and imaging studies, diagnosing vestibular Schwannoma. It is decided conservative treatment.Conclusions: Vestibular schwannoma is a rare tumor with unilateral auditory and vestibular symptoms. The suspicion and confirmation of early diagnosis with elements of the clinical history, contrasting audiological and imaging studies, guarantee the implementation of an individualized therapeutic option that contributes to the patient's quality of life.

(editorial)

Knowing the actions carried out by the individuals who have been bearers of the most transcendental and deep-rooted values of cuban medicine is highly relevant. The authors of this article have tried to focus attention on a man who has been considered the father of cuban neurosurgery, thus the objective of this work was to describe the life work of Dr. Carlos Manuel Ramírez Corría. After receiving professional training in France, he returned to Cuba to work at the General Calixto García University Hospital in 1934, where he created the first cuban neurosurgery service at the end of the 1940s. Since then he dedicated himself to medical assistance, teaching, and research. He was a genuine herald of the cuban neurosurgical school. He bequeathed an excellent and luminous model of an integral doctor, surgeon, scientist, educator, and patriot.

Ectopic meningiomas are a rare and infrequent variant, in case series they represent 1% of all intracranial meningiomas. In this case of a white patient, male, 44 years old, with previous health history and a 6 month history of right hemicranial headache that relieved with conventional analgesia is presented. The regional physical examination shows an increase in the right frontotemporal volume, of firm consistency, adhered to deep planes and the neurological examination is negative. The unusual form of presentation associated with the few reports of this type of entity in our country motivated the presentation of the following case. As a conclusion, the infrequency of intraosseous meningiomas and the few clinical manifestations mean that the diagnosis is late in most cases, when they become large or invade the adjacent neurovascular structures. Radical surgical excision with plastic reconstruction of the bone defect is the gold standard of treatment.

Introduction: Cancer is the second leading cause of death in our country and in the world. Within the attractive targets for the design of new anticarcinogenic agents we find aminopeptidases. In particular, within the M1 family, the neutral aminopeptidase (APN, EC 3.4.11.2), the acid aminopeptidase (APA, EC 3.4.11.7) and within the S9 family of serine peptidases, the enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP -IV, EC 3.4.14.5); the before mentioned are targets established for the development of new anticancer agents due to their over-expression in different types of cancer. Considering the biomedical relevance of the inhibition of APN, APA and DPP-IV, the main goal of this paper is to identify new inhibitors of these enzymes with potential biomedical applications.Methods: They were addressed two strategies for the identification of new inhibitors of the enzymes under study: a) identification and biochemical characterization of new low molecular mass inhibitors of APN, APA and DPP-IV, for which virtual screenings were carried out in the base of low molecular mass compounds HitFinder, Maybridge (ThermoFisher), and b) biochemical characterization of the inhibition of APN, APA and DPP-IV by bestatin and bacitracin as new inhibitors of these enzymes. Subsequently, it was carried out the kinetic validation of the new identified inhibitors, they were carried out in silico structure: function relationship studies, it was also evaluated the biodistribution in a rat model as well as their cytotoxic effects on APN+/DPP-IV+ tumor lines.Results: They were identified and kinetically validated five new dual inhibitors of APN, APA and DPP-IV with non-competitive inhibition mechanisms in most cases. In silico studies of Enzyme: inhibitor complexes allowed the identification of non-conserved residues within the corresponding family and this lays the foundations for the rational design of highly selective APN, APA and DPP-IV inhibitors with greater biomedical potential. They were identified for the first time, using a methodology established in this work the presence of APN and DPP-IV in cancer tumor lines with high incidence and mortality in Cuba and the world. The new inhibitors have promising effects on these APN+/DPP-IV+ tumor lines.Conclusions: They are reported for the first-time new inhibitors of APN, APA and DPP-IV, with different inhibition mechanisms, some of them non-competitive, which are more advantageous from the therapeutic point of view than competitive inhibitors, with promising effects on tumor lines related to cancers with high incidence and mortality in Cuba.

Introduction: Vector-borne canine diseases are a serious danger to animal and human health. The objective of the present study was to determine the prevalence of zoonotic pathogens (Anaplasma platys, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, Ehrlichia canis and Rickettsia spp. and non-zoonotic (Hepatozoon canis and Babesia spp.) in ownerless dogs from Havana, Cuba. Methods: Blood samples were collected from 100 dogs and the hematological profiles were studied and pathogens were detected by visualization of blood smears and real-time PCR. To determine the prevalence of infection by Hepatozoon canis, 80 dogs were studied by visualization of blood smears and real time PCR. For the detection of Babesia spp., 60 dogs were studied, using hematological examination, blood smear visualization and PCR. Results: Eighty-five dogs were positive for at least one pathogen, being E. canis the most prevalent, followed by A. platys and Rickettsia felis, and 36 % showed coinfections. All samples were negative for A. phagocytophilum and B. burgdorferi s.l. These results constitute the first report of R. felis in dogs from Cuba, demonstrate the high prevalence of pathogens transmitted by ticks, with zoonotic potential, and constitute the first study where coinfections are analyzed. 38 % of the dogs were positive for H. canis by PCR and for the first-time molecular characterization of H. canis was carried out in Cuban ownerless dogs and 20 % were positive by PCR for Babesia spp., which constitutes the first molecular evidence of Babesia spp. in ownerless dogs from Cuba. Conclusions, these results are of great importance for the surveillance of vector-borne diseases in dogs, and demonstrate the need for studies on the prevention of transmission and spread of the diseases they cause.