The ORIGEN Project identified, for the first time, variants potentially associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) in individuals from the Caldas region of Colombia. These findings provide novel insights into the genetic architecture of CVD in an underrepresented population and contribute to closing the knowledge gap in Latin American genomics research. Peripheral blood samples were collected for DNA extraction and exome sequencing using the Oxford Nanopore® platform. Bioinformatics analysis was performed at the variables and their relationships were described. Statistical significance was demonstrated with a p-value less than 0.05. The study involved 250 individuals divided into three groups: individuals diagnosed with cardiovascular disease (CVD), older adults without a known CVD diagnosis, and a healthy control group. The most common diagnoses in the CVD group were hypertension (29%), acute myocardial infarction (27%), and heart failure (5%). Whole exome sequencing revealed six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) potentially associated with CVD in the genes HFE, PERM1, and FBN1. The number of pathogenic variants was significantly higher in the older adult group (60 variants), the CVD group (49 variants), and the control group (16 variants). The identification of pathogenic variants potentially associated with CVD and aging in our population opens new avenues for the advancement of precision medicine in the region and the country.

Teachers play a critical role in social and economic development, yet evidence on their health outcomes in Latin America remains scarce. In Colombia, teachers are generally classified in occupational risk level 1, a category considered to have minimal hazards. This study aimed to describe and compare mortality and comorbidities among teachers and non-teachers in the same risk category, and to explore differences across educational levels within the teaching profession. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using four linked national administrative databases in 2017. Adults affiliated to the contributory health insurance scheme and classified under occupational risk level 1 were included. Teachers were identified and stratified by educational level. Outcomes included one-year all-cause mortality and prevalence of mental health and hearing disorders. Multivariable logistic regression models adjusted for sociodemographic and clinical covariates were used to estimate associations. A total of 4,256,719 individuals were included, of whom 353,985 (8.3%) were teachers. Teachers were older (mean age 40.1 vs 36.4 years) and more frequently female (69% vs 60%) than non-teachers. The one-year mortality proportion was higher among teachers (0.14%) than non-teachers (0.11%). After adjustment, teaching was associated with a 15% higher risk of mortality (OR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.03-1.28). No significant associations were found for mental health (OR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.96-1.01) or hearing disorders (OR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.92-1.02). Subgroup analyses showed the highest mortality proportions among teachers in technical and technological education. Despite being classified in the lowest occupational risk level, private-sector teachers in Colombia exhibited higher mortality compared with other workers in the same group. Differences in mental health and hearing disorders were not significant. These findings highlight the need to strengthen surveillance, prevention, and protection strategies tailored to teachers, recognizing them as a priority population within occupational health and education policies.

The COVID-19 pandemic, marked by surges in healthcare demand and resource shortages, may exacerbated existing health disparities, particularly among marginalized racial groups. Black populations, in particular, often face reduced access to timely and quality care, worsening health outcomes. This study examines how a universal healthcare system responded to the pandemic and whether it mitigated racial disparities in stroke care. Using a multiple-group interrupted time-series analysis, we analyzed panel data (2016 to 2021) from Colombia to assess the impact of the pandemic on stroke-related healthcare access, treatment duration, and mortality among Black and White populations. Results showed that the Colombian healthcare system provided a protective effect for the White population. While healthcare access decreased for both groups during the pandemic, treatment durations differed. Black patients experienced a sharp increase in hospital stay duration immediately after the onset of COVID-19, followed by a steady decline of roughly 1% every two months. In contrast, White patients' treatment durations did not decline but instead continued to increase over time. Additionally, although pre-pandemic mortality rates were consistently higher among Black individuals, this disparity widened during the pandemic. While the White population saw a reduction in discharge mortality rates during the pandemic, the rates for Black individuals increased (3%). These findings demonstrate the limitations of universal health coverage in addressing racial disparities during crises. Policy responses should prioritize strengthening healthcare infrastructure in underserved areas and addressing implicit biases in care delivery to ensure equity during health crises.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the radiation exposure received by workers in the nuclear medicine department of a private hospital in Bogotá, Colombia, during the period 2022-2023. The Hp (10) and Hp (0.07) readings for 15 workers including nuclear medicine (NM) physicians, nurses, and technologists who performed tasks in PET/CT and SPECT/CT were retrieved and analysed retrospectively. The results showed that in 2022, the average accumulated Hp (10) values for NM physicians, nurses, and technologists were, 1.5±0.3mSv, 1.9±0.4mSv, and 2.1±0.6mSv, respectively. Compared with 2022 (9.45mSv vs 16.07mSv), the mean annual extremity doses to nurses and technologists increased by 37.5% and 44.6%, respectively, in 2023 (15.11mSv vs 29.05mSv), due to the increase in the number of procedures. Technologists, particularly those responsible for preparing and administering the radiopharmaceuticals in PET/CT, recorded the maximum annual effective dose (3.0mSv) and extremity dose (91.3mSv) during 2022 and 2023.

ABSTRACT This study evaluated the potential of thermally activated bentonite to reduce clinker usage and CO2 emissions in cement production. Three bentonites of different geological origins (from U.S.A. Korea, and India) were heat-treated at 700°C to destabilize their layered structures and induce partial amorphization. The structural transformations were characterized using XRD and FTIR, and pozzolanic activity was assessed through thermogravimetric analysis and compressive strength. The results revealed that Gampo (Korea) bentonite exhibited clear pozzolanic activity, enabling 20–30% replacement of cement with comparable or improved compressive strength. In contrast, Californian bentonite remained largely inert under identical treatment. Thermodynamic modeling validated experimental findings by predicting the formation of substantial C–A–S–H and hydrotalcite phases for the reactive sources. This study showed that regionally available bentonite can be used as a supplementary cementitious material after optimal heat treatment, aligning with global strategies to reduce CO2 footprint of construction materials.

Abstract Changes in land use, climate, and socio-ecology drive altered fire regimes that in turn reshape global ecosystems. Rapid afforestation with commercial tree plantations is transforming fire-prone savannas and grasslands globally and particularly in tropical South America, yet its effects on fire dynamics remain poorly understood. Using hierarchical models, we analysed trends in annual burned area within concentric buffers (1 to 6 km) around each of 44 plantation and 52 grassland sites in Colombia’s Orinoquia region—a savanna grassland forest mosaic undergoing major land-use transitions from the expansion of commercial tree plantations. Plantations reduced burned areas in two ways: order-of-magnitude increases in plantation area reduced burnt area by 15% and plantation sites reduced their burnt area by 2% each year; both results consistent with trees replacing more inflammable grassland vegetation. While the mechanisms behind divergent savanna/plantation fire dynamics remain unresolved and could involve active fuel management and fire response, increased canopy cover or some combination thereof, this study provides spatially explicit, context-sensitive evidence on how land-use transitions interact with fire regimes with direct relevance for grasslands and savanna management and climate adaptation policy in South America.

SynCat is a cross-attention GNN that embeds molecules, detects reagents, and estimates reaction-center embeddings via permutation-invariant pairwise aggregation. It delivers improved reaction-classification performance compared with RXNFP and DRFP.