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Growing evidence suggests that the physical properties of the cellular microenvironment influence cell migration. However, it is not currently understood how active physical remodelling by cells affects migration dynamics. Here we report that cell clusters seeded on deformable collagen-I networks display persistent collective migration despite not showing any apparent intrinsic polarity. Clusters generate transient gradients in collagen density and alignment due to viscoelastic relaxation of the collagen networks. Combining theory and experiments, we show that crosslinking collagen networks or reducing cell cluster size results in reduced network deformation, shorter viscoelastic relaxation time and smaller gradients, leading to lower migration persistence. Traction force and Brillouin microscopy reveal asymmetries in force distributions and collagen stiffness during migration, providing evidence of mechanical cross-talk between cells and their substrate during migration. This physical model provides a mechanism for self-generated directional migration on viscoelastic substrates in the absence of internal biochemical polarity cues.

Morphogenesis and cell state transitions must be coordinated in time and space to produce a functional tissue. An excellent paradigm to understand the coupling of these processes is mammalian hair follicle development, initiated by the formation of an epithelial invagination - termed placode – that coincides with the emergence of a designated hair follicle stem cell population. The mechanisms directing the deformation of the epithelium, cell state transitions, and physical compartmentalization of the placode are unknown. Here, we identify a key role for coordinated mechanical forces stemming from contractile, proliferative, and proteolytic activities across the epithelial and mesenchymal compartments in generating the placode structure. A ring of fibroblast cells gradually wraps around the placode cells to generate centripetal contractile forces, which in collaboration with polarized epithelial myosin activity promote elongation and local tissue thickening. These mechanical stresses further enhance and compartmentalize Sox9 expression to promote stem cell positioning. Subsequently, proteolytic remodeling locally softens the basement membrane to facilitate release of pressure on the placode, enabling localized cell divisions, tissue fluidification, and epithelial invagination into the underlying mesenchyme. Together, our experiments and modeling identify dynamic cell shape transformations and tissue-scale mechanical co-operation as key factors for orchestrating organ formation.

The study investigated the joint contribution of the self-regulated learning (SRL) and individual differences approaches to the prediction of university students’ grade point average (GPA) obtained at three separate time points throughout their degree (3 years). We assessed cognitive (i.e., previous academic performance, cognitive ability, and cognitive SRL strategies) and non-cognitive variables (i.e., personality, trait emotional intelligence, motivation, and non-cognitive SRL strategies) in a sample of Spanish undergraduates. Results showed that GPA correlated with previous academic performance (i.e., combination of high school’s GPA and college admission test score), academic self-efficacy, academic engagement, SRL strategies, and conscientiousness. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that non-cognitive factors (i.e., academic engagement, academic self-efficacy, regulation of behavior and context, and conscientiousness) alone explained 17–25% of the variance in GPA across three years, and previous academic performance accounted up to an additional 25% of the variance, jointly reaching an explained variance of up to 50% in GPA. Specifically, academic engagement and regulation of behavior and context demonstrated incremental validity over and above cognitive predictors such as previous academic performance, inductive reasoning and regulation of cognition and metacognition. The role of intelligence, whether cognitive or emotional, was not as obvious as a predictor. Two nested structural equation models explained about 27–29% of the variance in a latent GPA factor exclusively from a proxy of a global variable of non-cognitive factors as a latent predictor, which is a novel and promising proof of its robust criterion validity. Implications and recommendations for future studies are discussed.

Several factors present in the extracellular environment regulate epithelial cell adhesion and dynamics. Among them, growth factors such as EGF, upon binding to their receptors at the cell surface, get internalized and directly activate the acto-myosin machinery. In this study we present the effects of EGF on the contractility of epithelial cancer cell colonies in confined geometry of different sizes. We show that the extent to which EGF triggers contractility scales with the cluster size and thus the number of cells. Moreover, the collective contractility results in a radial distribution of traction forces, which are dependent on integrin β1 peripheral adhesions and transmitted to neighboring cells through adherens junctions. Taken together, EGF-induced contractility acts on the mechanical crosstalk and linkage between the cell-cell and cell-matrix compartments, regulating collective responses.

Intestinal organoids capture essential features of the intestinal epithelium such as crypt folding, cellular compartmentalization and collective movements. Each of these processes and their coordination require patterned forces that are at present unknown. Here we map three-dimensional cellular forces in mouse intestinal organoids grown on soft hydrogels. We show that these organoids exhibit a non-monotonic stress distribution that defines mechanical and functional compartments. The stem cell compartment pushes the extracellular matrix and folds through apical constriction, whereas the transit amplifying zone pulls the extracellular matrix and elongates through basal constriction. The size of the stem cell compartment depends on the extracellular-matrix stiffness and endogenous cellular forces. Computational modelling reveals that crypt shape and force distribution rely on cell surface tensions following cortical actomyosin density. Finally, cells are pulled out of the crypt along a gradient of increasing tension. Our study unveils how patterned forces enable compartmentalization, folding and collective migration in the intestinal epithelium.

Recent research has shown that cultural, linguistic, and sociodemographic peculiarities influence the measurement of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI). Assessing trait EI in different populations fosters cross-cultural research and expands the construct’s nomological network. In mental health, the trait EI of clinical populations has been scarcely researched. Accordingly, the present study examined the relationship between trait EI and key sociodemographic variables on Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue-SF) datasets with mental healthcare patients from three different Spanish-speaking countries. Collectively, these datasets comprised 528 participants, 23% from Chile (120), 28% from Peru (150), and 49% from Spain (258). The sociodemographic variables we used for trait EI comparisons were gender, age, educational level, civil status, and occupational status. Analyses involved Multigroup Exploratory Structural Equation Modelling (to test measurement invariance) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Our results revealed significant between-country differences in trait EI across the studied sociodemographic variables and interactions between these variables. Measurement invariance across the datasets was attained up to the scalar level regarding gender and education (i.e., strong invariance), although analyses on age, civil status, and occupation displayed non-invariance. The resultant psychometric evidence supports the suitability of the TEIQue-SF for the accurate cross-cultural assessment of trait EI in mental health settings. It also highlights the importance of incorporating trait EI into extant psychotherapeutic frameworks to enhance non-pharmacological treatment efficacy.

espanolRESUMEN El modelo holistico de salud exige incluir las emociones en las estrategias de prevencion y promocion. Para comprobar la extension de su consideracion en la educacion para la salud, se realizo una revision sistematica en las bases de datos Medline, PsycInfo y ERIC. Se aceptaron 66 de los 648 articulos revisados, hallandose gran diversidad tematica, teorica y terminologica respecto a la salud emocional. Por tanto, la representacion en la literatura cientifica de las estrategias de educacion para la salud que incluyen las emociones es todavia pequena. Asimismo, aquellas que si las incluyen presentan una gran variedad terminologica y teorica que dificulta la difusion del conocimiento y la generalizacion de resultados. Se pone de manifiesto la necesidad de implementacion de un modelo de formacion para la salud en el que se incluya la educacion emocional como componente fundamental de la misma, en sintonia con los recientes avances cientificos. EnglishABSTRACT The holistic model of health requires the inclusion of emotions in prevention and promotion policies. A systematic review was carried out in databases Medline, PsychInfo, and ERIC to check the extent to which emotions are covered in health education. Sixty-six of the 648 papers reviewed were accepted, presenting a wide range of topics, theories, and terms regarding emotional health. Therefore, health education strategies that take emotions into consideration are still underrepresented in scie.jpgic literature. Moreover, a great terminological and theorical diversity is found among the ones that incorporate emotional health, hindering knowledge dissemination and generalization of results. The need for an implementation of a health education model where emotional education is included as an essential part of it, according to recent scie.jpgic advances is clearly shown.

Several investigations state the low participation of women in the world of STEM. This fact implies a lack of feminine perspective in the solution to different problems. The school must provide teaching / learning strategies for the integration, empowerment, and active participation from early ages to work performance in STEM. This paper exposes two unplugged activities taken from a series of activities implemented with elementary students and families in Madrid, Spain. The general objectives are: To introduce and motivate interest from an early age in computer programming and the development of gender dynamics that educate about gender equity to strengthen female empowerment in this context.

El estudio, descriptivo-correlacional, evalúa la competencia emocional de docentes de Infantil y Primaria y de estudiantes universitarios de los Grados de Educación Infantil y Primaria. Se contó con una submuestra de 92 docentes y otra de 290 estudiantes. La competencia emocional se defi nió operacionalmente a partir de dos indicadores: meta- estados de ánimo y empatía cognitiva-afectiva. Los resultados revelan que el nivel de desarrollo en la mayoría de los componentes de la competencia emocional estudiados son superiores en quienes tienen mayor experiencia (docentes vs. estudiantes) y poseen algún grado de formación emocional, lo que indirectamente avala la modifi cabilidad de la competencia emocional.

During tumor progression, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) accumulate in tumors and produce excessive extracellular matrix (ECM), forming a capsule that enwraps cancer cells. This capsule is a barrier that restricts tumor growth leading to the buildup of intratumoral pressure. Combining genetic and physical manipulations in vivo with microfabrication and force measurements in vitro, we found that the CAFs capsule is not a passive barrier but instead actively compresses cancer cells using actomyosin contractility. Cancer cells mechanosense CAF compression, resulting in an altered localization of the transcriptional regulator YAP. Abrogation of CAFs contractility in vivo leads to the dissipation of compressive forces and impairment of capsule formation. By mapping CAF force patterns in 3D, we show that compression is a CAF-intrinsic property independent of cancer cell growth. Supracellular coordination of CAFs is achieved through fibronectin cables that serve as scaffolds allowing force transmission. Our study unveils that the contractile capsule actively compresses cancer cells, modulates their mechanical signaling, and reorganizes tumor morphology.

Topics and metaphors within the system of classical rhetoric served as store-houses at times, to express ideas from the most general to the most particular, passing through an infinite number of th...

Few studies have analyzed emotional educational experiences through physical education interventions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects on socio-emotional competencies of a physical education intervention (i.e., the MooN program) based on the instructional model known as the sports education model (SEM), compared to a physical education intervention based on the traditional model of direct instruction (TM-DI) in preadolescents. The sample consisted of 170 students between 10 and 13 years old (mean age: M = 10.76, standard deviation: SD = 0.73). Participants were randomly assigned to the experimental group (SEM, n = 87) and the active control group (TM-DI, n = 83). In the experimental group, the SEM-based intervention was applied, while in the active control group, an intervention based on the TM-DI was developed. A quasi-experimental design with repeated pre-test and post-test measures and an active control group was used. The self-efficacy inventory for multiple intelligences (IAMI-40) was used to assess the children’s socio-emotional competencies. The child perfectionism inventory was applied to evaluate the self-demand perfectionist efforts. The results confirmed that the MooN program (SEM intervention) promoted significant improvements in socio-emotional competencies. These findings support the potential of this physical education instructional model as an emotional education pathway for the socio-emotional improvement of preadolescent students.

The dizzying life of the homeostatic intestinal epithelium is governed by a complex interplay between fate, form, force and function. This interplay is beginning to be elucidated thanks to advances in intravital and ex vivo imaging, organoid culture, and biomechanical measurements. Recent discoveries have untangled the intricate organization of the forces that fold the monolayer into crypts and villi, compartmentalize cell types, direct cell migration, and regulate cell identity, proliferation and death. These findings revealed that the dynamic equilibrium of the healthy intestinal epithelium relies on its ability to precisely coordinate tractions and tensions in space and time. In this review, we discuss recent findings in intestinal mechanobiology, and highlight some of the many fascinating questions that remain to be addressed in this emerging field.

Intestinal organoids capture essential features of the intestinal epithelium such as folding of the crypt, spatial compartmentalization of different cell types, and cellular movements from crypt to villus-like domains. Each of these processes and their coordination in time and space requires patterned physical forces that are currently unknown. Here we map the three-dimensional cell-ECM and cell-cell forces in mouse intestinal organoids grown on soft hydrogels. We show that these organoids exhibit a non-monotonic stress distribution that defines mechanical and functional compartments. The stem cell compartment pushes the ECM and folds through apical constriction, whereas the transit amplifying zone pulls the ECM and elongates through basal constriction. Tension measurements establish that the transit amplifying zone isolates mechanically the stem cell compartment and the villus-like domain. A 3D vertex model shows that the shape and force distribution of the crypt can be largely explained by cell surface tensions following the measured apical and basal actomyosin density. Finally, we show that cells are pulled out of the crypt along a gradient of increasing tension, rather than pushed by a compressive stress downstream of mitotic pressure as previously assumed. Our study unveils how patterned forces enable folding and collective migration in the intestinal crypt.

There is growing evidence that the physical properties of the cellular environment can impact cell migration. However, it is not currently understood how active physical remodeling of the network by cells affects their migration dynamics. Here, we study collective migration of small clusters of cells on deformable collagen-1 networks. Combining theory and experiments, we find that cell clusters, despite displaying no apparent internal polarity, migrate persistently and generate asymmetric collagen gradients during migration. We find that persistent migration can arise from viscoelastic relaxation of collagen networks, and reducing the viscoelastic relaxation time by chemical crosslinking leads to a reduction in migration persistence. Single cells produce only short range network deformations that relax on shorter timescales, which leads to lower migration persistence. This physical model provides a mechanism for self-generated directional migration on viscoelastic substrates in the absence of internal biochemical cues.

The purpose of this research is, on the one hand, to analyze the self-perception of future teachers of childhood education and primary education, and those studying for a master&rsquo, s degree in secondary education teacher training on their Teacher Digital Competence (TDC), as well as the potential influence of gender, country and university institution of origin in their representations. On the other hand, it seeks to analyze the perception of future teachers on the TDC of their university trainers (formative perception). In accordance with these aims, a quantitative methodology of a non-experimental nature and of a prospective cross-sectional ex post facto approach has been used. A total of 428 students from two Spanish universities and from a French university agreed to participate in the research. The results report a positive and differential self-perception by gender of the TDC acquired and unfavorable perceptions of the digital competences of their teachers. These results confirm the need to improve the technological-manipulative and didactic training of university teachers, and to adapt the teaching competences to the demands of the Information and Communication Society (ICS) and to the guidelines of the Common Digital Competence Framework.

Computational thinking (CT) is arising as a set of problem-solving skills that must be acquired by the new generations of students to fully understand and participate in our computer-based world. However, from a psychometric approach, we are still at an early stage regarding the definition and assessment of CT as a psychological variable. One way to advance in this area is to investigate whether ‘computationally talented’ students (i.e., ‘computational top thinkers’) can be detected even before learning to code; and, if so, how to teach them properly to fully develop their high-computational ability. This paper presents several empirical concatenated studies about the predictive validity of the Computational Thinking Test (CTt), which is administered on a sample of 314 middle school Spanish students ( n = 314 ). We report the predictive validity of the CTt, conducted at the beginning of the quarter, with respect to academic performance (Informatics, Mathematics, and Language) and learning analytics in a Code.org course collected at the end of the quarter. We also analyze the predictive validity of the CTt to early distinguish between ‘computational regular thinkers’ and ‘computational top thinkers’ (i.e., those who spontaneously accelerated from the ‘block-based’ programming environment of Code.org to the ‘text-based’ one of Khan Academy). Finally, we perform a case study over two of the students categorized as ‘computational top thinkers’, in which one of their coding products written in Processing JavaScript is described. Our results demonstrate that ‘computationally talented’ students can be detected in middle school, and that these subjects have the ability to accelerate in the Computer Science Education standards between 1 and 2 years compared to the regular learners. This could have major implications on the emerging computing curricula, which should take into account these individual differences in computational ability and ‘learning-how-to-code’ speed to ensure an appropriate progression for every student.

Emotional intelligence (EI) may promote wellbeing through facilitation of adaptive attentional processing patterns. In the current study, a total of 54 adults (43 females, mean age = 25 years, SD = 10 years) completed a Trait Emotional Intelligence (TEI) scale and took part in three eye-tracking tasks, where they viewed (1) faces with different emotions (happy, angry, fearful, neutral), (2) 16-face crowds with varying ratios of happy to angry faces, and (3) 4 visual scenes (physical threat, social threat, positive social, neutral). Findings showed that higher TEI was associated with more attention to positive emotional stimuli (happy faces, positive social scenes), relative to negative and neutral stimuli. An attentional preference for positive rather than negative emotional stimuli may be one way that TEI affords protection from stressors to promote mental health.

Se analiza la necesidad de determinar los conte - nidos relevantes en la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de la histología para la formación de médicos en Ecuador, es decir aquellos que el profesional nece - sitará para la práctica médica. Se propone descu - brir esos contenidos relevantes a través de metodo - logías de solución de problemas a partir de casos profesionales para la enseñanza de histología. El estudiante se motiva así a investigar, y por medio de su aprendizaje independiente determina los conoci - mientos esenciales.

Using an in vitro wound healing assay, De Pascalis et al. show that intermediate filaments (IFs) participate in the dynamics of the acto-myosin network and its association with adhesions in astrocytes during collective migration. Glial IFs control the distribution of forces and the interactions between neighboring cells, ultimately determining the speed and direction of collective migration., Mesenchymal cell migration relies on the coordinated regulation of the actin and microtubule networks that participate in polarized cell protrusion, adhesion, and contraction. During collective migration, most of the traction forces are generated by the acto-myosin network linked to focal adhesions at the front of leader cells, which transmit these pulling forces to the followers. Here, using an in vitro wound healing assay to induce polarization and collective directed migration of primary astrocytes, we show that the intermediate filament (IF) network composed of vimentin, glial fibrillary acidic protein, and nestin contributes to directed collective movement by controlling the distribution of forces in the migrating cell monolayer. Together with the cytoskeletal linker plectin, these IFs control the organization and dynamics of the acto-myosin network, promoting the actin-driven treadmilling of adherens junctions, thereby facilitating the polarization of leader cells. Independently of their effect on adherens junctions, IFs influence the dynamics and localization of focal adhesions and limit their mechanical coupling to the acto-myosin network. We thus conclude that IFs promote collective directed migration in astrocytes by restricting the generation of traction forces to the front of leader cells, preventing aberrant tractions in the followers, and by contributing to the maintenance of lateral cell–cell interactions.

We investigated possible pathways into mental illness via the combined effects of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI), mindfulness, and irrational beliefs. The sample comprised 121 psychiatric outpatients (64.5% males, mean age = 38.8 years) with a variety of formal clinical diagnoses. Psychopathology was operationalized by means of 3 distinct indicators from the Millon Clinical Multi-Axial Inventory (mild pathology, severe pathology, and clinical symptomatology). A structural equation model confirmed significant direct trait EI and mindfulness effects on irrational beliefs and psychopathology. Trait EI also had a significant indirect effect on psychopathology via mindfulness. Together, the 3 constructs accounted for 44% of the variance in psychopathology. A series of hierarchical regressions demonstrated that trait EI is a stronger predictor of psychopathology than mindfulness and irrational beliefs combined. We conclude that the identified pathways can provide the basis for the development of safe and effective responses to the ongoing mental health and overmedication crises. Key Practitioners Messages Self-perception constructs concerning one's beliefs about oneself have a major impact on the likelihood of developing psychopathological symptoms. Emotional perceptions captured by trait emotional intelligence were stronger predictors of psychopathology than either or both mindfulness and irrational beliefs in a clinical sample of adults. If the seed factors of psychopathology are mainly psychological, rather than mainly biological, and given that psychological constructs, like trait emotional intelligence, mindfulness, and irrational beliefs, are amenable to training and optimization, the findings herein provide the impetus for a much needed shift of emphasis from pharmacological to psychological treatments.

The aim of this study was to unravel the interrelated effects of trait emotional intelligence (Trait EI), mindfulness, and irrational beliefs on adolescent mental health. A random sample of students from three secondary schools in Spain and eight secondary schools in Portugal was recruited. We conducted four-step hierarchical regression analyses. We also conducted regression analyses to examine the role of mindfulness skills and catastrophizing as mediators of the link between emotional intelligence and psychosocial problems. Finally, the SPSS PROCESS computing tool was used to perform conditional process analysis (model 6). A total of 1370 adolescents from Spain (n = 591) and Portugal (n = 779) participated in this study (mean age = 14.97, SD = 1.50, range = 12&ndash, 18). The mediation analyses confirmed that adolescent mental health was determined by Trait EI directly, and by mindfulness skills and catastrophizing thoughts in an indirect way. Together, the four variables explained 44% of psychopathology, with EI being the most powerful predictor, which ratify the robust buffer role and incremental validity of Trait EI against youth mental health. The identified pathways provide keys for emotional education interventions aimed at promoting adolescent mental health.

Transculturation processes and the formation of identity are analyzed in this investigation into the emblematic politics of the Primer nueva cor&oacute, nica y buen gobierno (First new chronicle and good government) of Guam&aacute, n Poma de Ayala (ca. 1616). Understood as pluricultural acts of discourse between Andean cosmological visions and the new systems of European cultural codification, this study follows the emblematic chronicler from Poma on the subject of colonial education and the Ladino Indian, through structured relations fixed between space, icon, and symbol. The careful iconographic arrangement of the drawings of Guam&aacute, n are the result of conscient knowledge of the usefulness of the image and its didactic, persuasive, propagandistic, and mnemotechnic potential. Learning the reading and writing of the Castilian language will be presented here as one of the most effective social instruments in the colonial order and in the defense of native Indians before Viceroyal authorities. Mastery of writing sets the foundation for shaping a multiple and transcultural non-exclusive identity, which shows evidence of dialogic and effective communication of a cultural memory, the result of the negotiation of two identities, one from the awareness of the pre-Hispanic past and another orderly realignment in accordance with European cultural patterns.

espanolDebido al interes que la literatura cientifica ha mostrado en la inteligencia emocional y los beneficios que esta parece aportar sobre diferentes areas de la persona, el presente trabajo realiza una recopilacion y analisis de los diferentes instrumentos de evaluacion de la inteligencia emocional capacidad hallados tras una revision selectiva de la literatura. Se analizan las propiedades psicometricas y las caracteristicas distintivas de cada uno de los instrumentos localizados teniendo en cuenta su adecuacion a la m edicion del constructo. Se concluye que, a pesar de la aparente diversidad de pruebas, el desarrollo de instrumentos de evaluacion de la inteligencia emocional capacidad con garantias psicometricas se encuentra aun en un periodo inicial. EnglishDue to the interest that the scientific literature has shown in emotional intelligence and the benefits that it seems to produce in different vital areas , this work compiles and analyses the different instruments for measuring the ability emotional intelligence found after a selective review of the literature. The psychometric properties and the distinctive features of each one of the found instruments are analysed ta king into account their adequacy to the assessment of the construct. It is concluded that, despite the apparent diversity of instruments, the development of ability emotional intelligence assessment instruments with psychometric guarantees is still in an initial period.

Trait Emotional intelligence (Trait EI) can be understood as a personality trait related to individual differences in recognition, processing, and the regulation of emotionally charged information. Trait EI has been considered a variable of great importance in determining psychosocial adjustment. However, most research on Trait EI has focused on adult and adolescent populations, while very few studies have explored its influence on children. The aim of this study was to analyze possible pathways into psychosocial adjustment in children by examining the combined effects of Trait EI and emotional and social problems. It also aimed to assess the possible mediating role of gender in this relationship. A total of 268 Spanish children participated in this study, ranging in age from 8 to 12 years (mean age = 10.09, SD = 1.32, 45.10% male). Selected measures were applied through a web-based survey called DetectaWeb. The regression and mediation/moderation analyses confirmed that psychosocial adjustment in children was determined by Trait EI directly and by emotional and social problems in an indirect way. Together, the three variables explained 46% of the variance in psychosocial adjustment, although Trait EI was the most powerful predictor (44%), demonstrating incremental validity over and above social and emotional problems. In addition, gender was shown to be a moderating variable between Trait EI and psychosocial adjustment; for girls specifically, lower Trait EI scores were a determinant of lower levels of psychosocial adjustment, regardless of emotional and social problems. It can be concluded that the identified pathways provide keys for emotional education interventions aimed at promoting psychosocial adjustment, well-being, and good mental health among children. Our findings support the buffer role of Trait EI against maladjustment risk in children, but more clearly in girls.

Trait emotional intelligence (“trait EI”) concerns our perceptions of our emotional abilities, that is, how good we believe we are in terms of understanding, regulating, and expressing emotions in order to adapt to our environment and maintain well-being. In this article, we present succinct summaries of selected findings from research on (a) the location of trait EI in personality factor space, (b) the biological underpinnings of the construct, (c) indicative applications in the areas of clinical, health, social, educational, organizational, and developmental psychology, and (d) trait EI training. Findings to date suggest that individual differences in trait EI are a consistent predictor of human behavior across the life span.

La calidad en las instituciones de la Educación Superior requiere del diseño de un sistema de gestión y autoevaluación mediante los instrumentos del Sistema Universitario de Programas de Acreditación. El sistema de evaluación y acreditación establecido por este Ministerio, dígase maestrías, doctorados, carreras, instituciones parte de la autoevaluación respectiva y transita hacia la evaluación externa, la valoración final por la Junta de Acreditación Nacional y la divulgación de sus resultados. Para satisfacer tales demandas resulta necesario trabajar porque los procesos que se llevan a cabo en la institución respondan al patrón de calidad instaurado. En los documentos establecidos se plantea la necesidad de gestionar tales procesos. En el presente trabajo, se defiende la tesis de que no basta con gestionarlos, se hace necesario liderarlos y se ofrece un punto de vista al respecto, unido a una propuesta para conseguirlo.

Cell function depends on tissue rigidity, which cells probe by applying and transmitting forces to their extracellular matrix, and then transducing them into biochemical signals. Here we show that in response to matrix rigidity and density, force transmission and transduction are explained by the mechanical properties of the actin-talin-integrin-fibronectin clutch. We demonstrate that force transmission is regulated by a dynamic clutch mechanism, which unveils its fundamental biphasic force/rigidity relationship on talin depletion. Force transduction is triggered by talin unfolding above a stiffness threshold. Below this threshold, integrins unbind and release force before talin can unfold. Above the threshold, talin unfolds and binds to vinculin, leading to adhesion growth and YAP nuclear translocation. Matrix density, myosin contractility, integrin ligation and talin mechanical stability differently and nonlinearly regulate both force transmission and the transduction threshold. In all cases, coupling of talin unfolding dynamics to a theoretical clutch model quantitatively predicts cell response.

La presente comunicación es uno de los resultados obtenidos a partir de las reflexiones realizadas, en el orden teórico y práctico, por un equipo de profesores investigadores que por más de cinco años de experiencias integraron el proyecto de investigación “Formación a distancia del personal docente”, que en coordinación con la OEI, y a través de su Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional y Desarrollo (AECID), se desarrolló en Cuba en 9 Universidades de Ciencias Pedagógicas. En el mismo se hace una valoración acerca de los estudios de posgrados en el país y las grandes posibilidades que tiene la utilización de las TIC, en función de poder llegarles a todos y satisfacer las grandes y crecientes demandas de actualización del conocimiento de la población en general y de forma particular al personal docente. Se sugieren algunas técnicas de evaluación utilizadas en la modalidad de educación a distancia, siempre sobre la base de la interactividad con el estudiante.