The University of Guayaquil (Spanish: Universidad de Guayaquil), known colloquially as the Estatal (i.e., "the State [University]"), is a public university in Guayaquil, Guayas Province, Ecuador.Estatal was founded in 1883. It is the oldest university in the city of Guayaquil and has the largest student body (over 80,000 students). It operates six extension universities throughout the country.
El estudio de la sostenibilidad surge como respuesta a la fragmentación y deterioro de los territorios de las ciudades y hábitats naturales. El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar la forma urbana barrial a partir de 20 casos de la ciudad de Guayaquil. Se realiza un estudio bibliográfico sobre la forma urbana sostenible, se seleccionan casos con base en criterios geográficos y morfológicos, y se relevan datos en campo. A su vez, se seleccionaron variables e indicadores tales como: compacidad, conectividad, áreas verdes y calidad ambiental. Se establecieron parámetros de evaluación, y por medio de una normalización se obtuvieron índices de sostenibilidad barrial. Los resultados permitieron determinar una mayor influencia de las variables conectividad y áreas verdes en los niveles de sostenibilidad barrial. El estudio concluye abordando el valor de la metodología propuesta en la búsqueda de una forma urbana barrial sostenible que mejore la calidad de vida poblacional.
This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the CONGA game, an interactive and gamified digital tool that uses AI-generated or manually created questions with feedback, to improve colon cancer literacy among tenth- semester Software Engineering students at the University of Guayaquil. Grounded in Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy, CONGA operationalizes the concept of "conscientiza & ccedil;& atilde;o" (critical consciousness awakening) by engaging learners in dialogical reflection on medical myths and encouraging critical evaluation of health information sources. This work addresses an age group-emerging adulthood-that is often overlooked in cancer prevention campaigns despite increasing cancer incidence in this population. The game incorporates an adaptive engine that personalizes difficulty and scoring based on player performance, enhancing engagement and learning personalization. A controlled experiment compared the game-based intervention with traditional lecture-based instruction, using pre- and post-test assessments to measure knowledge gains and misconception reduction. Results demonstrated that the CONGA group achieved a significantly higher post-test correct response rate of 82%, compared to 57% in the traditional instruction group, and showed a 70.4% reduction in incorrect responses versus 42.4% in the control group. These findings indicate that CONGA's adaptive, feedback-driven design was more effective in enhancing short-term knowledge acquisition and immediate conceptual clarification following a single session. The study concludes that, based on immediate post-intervention assessments, gamified learning represents a scalable and engaging pedagogical strategy for colon cancer literacy, particularly in our local younger population. However, these results reflect short-term learning gains measured immediately after a single session, and further research is needed to evaluate long-term knowledge acquisition.
Argentina was certified malaria-free by the WHO in 2019 after eight years with no instances of local transmission. Epidemiological surveillance was focused on detecting Plasmodium vivax in areas where the last cases had been reported. During the national malaria surveillance program (2013–2018), several human blood samples were collected across neighborhoods using traditional microscopy and molecular techniques (2013–2017) to detect any silent circulation of P. vivax. In 2022, post-certification, 92 blood samples preserved in Whatman FTA paper were analyzed for the first time to detect the presence of Plasmodium parasites by amplifying and sequencing a fragment of the Plasmodium cytochrome b gene. A submicroscopic, asymptomatic P. vivax infection was identified in a 66-year-old individual from La Bendición neighborhood, Salvador Mazza, Salta province (northwestern Argentina). The individual had no history of travel to any P. vivax-endemic region. This case was the first detected infection among the samples collected from various localities along Argentina’s borders with Bolivia (northwest) and Brazil (northeast). This finding highlights the risk of silent circulation of P. vivax in areas previously assumed to be malaria-free and raises concerns regarding the timing of the certification. This is the first molecularly confirmed submicroscopic infection of P. vivax reported prior to malaria-free certification in Argentina and the Southern Cone region. Currently, there is no active epidemiological or entomological surveillance in the area where the case was recorded. It is imperative to strengthen the surveillance system to maintain the country’s malaria-free status within the national health system agenda and address the risks of silent malaria circulation and re-emergence. Furthermore, to comply with the national malaria program guidelines and WHO requirements to maintain malaria-free certification, the development and implementation of highly sensitive diagnostic tools to detect asymptomatic cases is crucial.
The brewing industry generates large volumes of malt bagasse, an underutilized lignocellulosic residue that poses an environmental challenge and represents an opportunity for the circular economy. In the face of increasing pressure on forest resources for paper production, the valorization of agro-industrial waste as an alternative source of cellulosic fiber emerges as a sustainable strategy. This study aimed to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of producing biodegradable paper from brewer’s spent grain using an alkaline pulping process with sodium hydroxide (NaOH). The methodology included the collection and pretreatment of the bagasse, two-stage alkaline digestion (70 °C and 80 °C), morphological characterization of cellulose by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and evaluation of the physical and mechanical properties of the resulting paper (grammage, moisture content, ash content, porosity, tensile strength, and tear resistance). The results showed a high grammage (233 g/m2), low porosity in the paper samples (Average: 27.96 μm2), ash content of 2.38%, maximum tensile stress of 2.26 MPa, elongation at break of 1.52%, and average tear resistance of 2.19 N—values comparable to those of commercial papers. Although the production cost at laboratory scale was high ($108.18/m2), the prospective analysis indicates that NaOH recovery (>80%) and process scale-up could reduce it to $3.28/m2, making it competitive. In conclusion, brewer’s spent grain constitutes a viable raw material for biodegradable paper production, aligned with circular economy principles, although further optimization is required to improve homogeneity, reduce ash content, and enable sustainable scale-up.
Mycoviruses, or fungal viruses, are widespread throughout the fungal kingdom. This study aimed to identify environmental factors associated with mycoviruses, explore their transmission mechanisms, including vector-mediated transmission, and assess their potential practical applications. A systematic, retrospective, and cross-sectional bibliographic review was conducted. These viruses are closely linked to their fungal hosts, thus developing a symbiotic relationship. Among environmental variables, temperature appears to play a more significant role in limiting fungal virulence than other factors, such as relative humidity or ultraviolet radiation. Most mycoviruses are generally asymptomatic RNA viruses, rarely affecting the host’s phenotype, and are transmitted intracellularly, primarily through vertical transmission via spores or horizontally through hyphal anastomosis; therefore, their life cycle typically lacks an extracellular phase. Mycoviruses remain understudied, particularly their role in vector-borne transmission and their influence on pathogen structure and behavior. Transmission can be persistent, where the virus replicates in insect vectors and is passed to offspring via infected eggs or feces, or non-persistent and indirect, facilitated by vectors without replication. Understanding the biology and ecology of mycoviruses is essential for advancing their potential use in the biocontrol of pathogens, including phytopathogens, representing a promising area of applied research.
