Buenos Aires Research Articles

First person – Cecilia Alejandra Vazquez

ABSTRACT First Person is a series of interviews with the first authors of a selection of papers published in Journal of Cell Science, helping researchers promote themselves alongside their papers. Cecilia Alejandra Vazquez is first author on ‘ Intracellular lipid droplets are exploited by Junín virus in a nucleoprotein-dependent process’, published in JCS. Cecilia Alejandra is a postdoc in the lab of Dr Sandra M. Cordo and Dr Cybele C. García at Universidad de Buenos Aires Int, Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she is interested in all things regarding the ‘One Health’ concept of optimizing the health of people, animals and ecosystems. In particular, I am passionate about host–pathogen interactions, how they can be affected by the environment and how understanding them can lead to the development of new therapies.

Walks, marches, parades: LGBT+ activist mnemonic labour in Argentina

This article investigates the mnemonic labour of LGBT+ activists and movements. It examines activists’ efforts to shape and mobilise memories for mnemonic, cultural and political change. The concept of the ‘memory-activism nexus’ is adopted as an analytical framework to unpack the relationship between memory in and of LGBT+ activism. This framework allows for a deeper understanding of the role of memory within the unique cultural orientation of LGBT+ movements. The article first offers an overview of the diverse approaches to mnemonic labour in the recent history of LGBT+ activism. Focusing on Argentina, the article then analyses the walk for Lesbian Visibility Day, organised in Buenos Aires by the activist collective Frente Docente Disidente in 2021. This case study shows how activists organise and sediment cultural memories for their later adaptation and (re)mobilisation.

Argentine reference charts for head circumference from birth to 19 years of age.

Introduction. Head circumference (HC) is an indicator of brain growth; growth charts are necessary to determine normal or pathological variations. Objectives. To present the first Argentine HC reference charts between birth and 19 years of age and to compare them with the Nellhaus charts, which have been used in our country to date. Population and methods. These references were developed based on combined data from the National Survey on Nutrition and Health of 2018 and cross-sectional studies conducted between 2004 and 2007 in the provinces of Buenos Aires and La Pampa, which included 8326 healthy children and adolescents. Growth curves were adjusted using the LMS method. To assess the differences between these reference charts and the Nellhaus charts, at different ages, the 2nd, 50th, and 98th percentiles were plotted. Results. HC showed a variable increase in size with age, which was greater in the first years of life, and a slight increase at puberty. The values for the 98th percentile of the Argentine reference charts werehigher than those of the Nellhaus charts at all ages. The values for the 2nd percentile of the national reference were lower than those of the Nellhaus charts during the first 2 years of life, similar between 3 and 7 years of age, and higher after this age. Conclusions. The Argentine curves adequately describe the growth pattern of HC. The differences found with the Nellhaus charts may be attributed to secular changes.

Wolbachia infection in natural mosquito populations from Argentina.

The increasing spread of mosquito vectors has made mosquito-borne arboviral diseases a global threat to public health, leading to the urgent need for effective population control methods. Strategies based in the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia Hertig, 1936 are considered environmentally friendly, safe for humans, and potentially cost-effective for controlling arboviral diseases. To minimize undesirable side effects, it is relevant to assess whether Wolbachia is present in the area and understand the diversity associated with native infections before implementing these strategies. With this purpose, we investigated Wolbachia infection status, diversity, and prevalence in populations of Aedes albifasciatus (Macquart, 1838), Aedes fluviatilis (Lutz, 1904), and hybrids of the Culex pipiens (Linnaeus, 1758) complex from Argentina. Aedes albifasciatus and C. pipiens complex samples were collected in the province of Buenos Aires, and A. fluviatilis in the province of Misiones. Aedes albifasciatus was found to be uninfected, while infections with strains wFlu and wPip were detected in A. fluviatilis and hybrids of the C. pipiens complex, respectively. All strains were fixed or close to fixation and clustered within supergroup B. These finding provides valuable information on Wolbachia strains found in natural mosquito populations in Argentina that might be used in heterologous infections in the future or be considered when designing control strategies based on Wolbachia infection.

New remains of Doedicurini (Cingulata, Glyptodontidae) from the latest Pliocene/earliest Pleistocene of the Pampean Region (Argentina) shed light on the morphological evolution of the caudal tube

Glyptodonts are probably among the most iconic and enigmatic mammals that ever lived during the Cenozoic of America. One of the main clades, Hoplophorinae, developed since the Miocene a structure unique within mammals, the caudal tube, composed of the union of the distal most caudal rings of the caudal armor. In some taxa, especially in the Late Pleistocene species, the caudal tube suffered significant morphological changes. One extreme case is represented by the giant-sized Doedicurini Doedicurus clavicaudatus, in which the caudal tube is transformed into a kind of “clave” (ie., a widening of the distal part, and some large lateral figures where corneal “spine-like” structure were inserted). It has been suggested that this was used in intraspecific combat rather than having a defensive function. Despite this, almost nothing is known about the morphological evolution of this structure along the evolutionary history of Doedicurini. The finding of new remains of Eleutherocercus sp. (a partial caudal tube and dorsal carapace) from the El Polvorín Formation at the Plio/Pleistocene boundary in the surrounding of Olavarría (Buenos Aires province, Argentina), allow us a better understanding of the morphological evolution of this structure between the Late Miocene/Pliocene Eleutherocercus spp. (ca. 7–2.6 Ma) and the Late Pleistocene Doedicurus clavicaudatus. The extreme modification in D. clavicaudatus involves, among others, the disappearance of the most proximal lateral figures, an increase in the diameter of the I Lat figures and disappearance of the II and III Lat figures; and increase in size and lateralisation of the dorso-ventral pairs (especially the 1st pair).

Responsive feeding patterns during early childhood in urban areas. Argentina, 2018-2019.

Introduction. Dietary quality involves both the quantity and quality of food offered, the way and the setting in which it is offered, and the responses of the person offering it. The objective of this study was to identify behavioral patterns related to responsive feeding in children aged 6 to 23 months in urban areas from Argentina in 2018-2019. Population and methods. Secondary analysis based on data from the second National Survey on Nutrition and Health of 2018-2019 conducted in a multistage probability sample from urban areas of 5000 inhabitants or more in Argentina. A descriptive analysis and a principal component analysis were performed to identify responsive feeding patterns in 4379 children aged 6 to 23 months. Results. Five responsive feeding patterns were identified; the first 2 dimensions explained 71.1% of inertia (p = 0.013). The pattern with a prevailing possibility of experimentation, autonomy, interaction, and the absence of screens, rewards and distractions was associated with children older than 12 months from the central and south regions (Cuyo, Pampa, Greater Buenos Aires, and Patagonia), whereas the pattern related to a lower autonomy, experimentation, and self-regulation corresponded to children aged 6 to 11 months from the Northwest and Northeast regions. Conclusion. There is evidence of responsive feeding practices that correspond to distinguishable patterns, associated with different stages of life and with the region where the children live.

Prevalence of Axial Spondyloarthritis in Young People With Chronic Low Back Pain at a Hospital-Based Health Management Organization: A 10-Year Database Study.

There is scarce information on the prevalence of axial spondylarthritis (axSpA) using the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis International Society (ASAS) criteria and even less in Latin America. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of axSpA by applying the ASAS 2009 criteria to a medical records review study of young people with chronic low back pain (LBP) at a university hospital-based health management organization. Electronic medical records from the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires health management organization were reviewed to estimate the prevalence of axSpA (radiographic axSpA [r-axSpA] and nonradiographic axSpA [nr-axSpA]) using the ASAS 2009 axSpA criteria in all patients with chronic LBP (≥3 months) aged <45 years at the first LBP appointment, observed between 2009 and 2019. Among 795 young people with CLBP, the estimated prevalence of axSpA was 5.78% (r-axSpA, 2.76%; nr-axSpA, 3.02%). Ten of 46 patients (21.74%) with axSpA (all nr-axSpA) were undiagnosed, with an undiagnosed axSpA prevalence of 1.26%. The median interval between the first LBP appointment and diagnosis was 34.6 months for axSpA (58.7 vs. 23.1 months for r-axSpA vs. nr-axSpA). Previously diagnosed r-axSpA and nr-axSpA patients had comparable use of biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) (45% vs. 36%) and delays between nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug failure and bDMARD initiation (median, 2.76 vs. 2.66 months). In our cohort of young persons with chronic LBP, the prevalence of axSpA was approximately 6%, with a high prevalence of undiagnosed axSpA, which could explain the low prevalence of axSpA reported in previous studies in Latin America.

Critical patients in general hospitalization wards: a descriptive analysis of factors inherent to the transfer to a closed unit

Unplanned transfers from the General Ward to Critical Care Units occur due to a deterioration in the patient's clinical status. They are of great interest because of their negative impact, associated with longer hospital stays and higher mortality. To report the frequency at which these transfers occur, characteristics of these patients and causes of the transfer. Identify shortcomings in the care process that may allow improvement strategies. cross-sectional study. Cases were considered those who, during the first 24 hours of hospitalization in the General Ward, required transfer to the ICU between January - December 2022 in a high-complexity hospital in Buenos Aires. Results: Of 8317 admissions, 124 were transferred to the ICU, with a rate of 14 per 1000 and an average of 70 years. The most frequent comorbidities were high blood pressure, heart failure, cancer and overweight-obesity. The main causes of hospitalization were respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms. 67% had non-alarming results in the NEWS score prior to transfer to the ICU. The most frequent causes were respiratory failure, hemodynamic instability and requirement for monitoring. Average hospital stay was 10 days and in-hospital mortality was 26%. Respiratory decompensation in elderly male patients was the most common cause of transfer to a Closed Unit. One of the shortcomings of the care process seems to be the NEWS score, where in 67% of cases it did not warn about the high requirement of patient monitoring.

Tintoretto in the city of La Plata? Several investigations for the reattribution of the Portrait of Melchior Michael to Tintoretto

The records of the Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes “Emilio Pettoruti” (Provincial Museum of Fine Arts of Buenos Aires "Emilio Pettoruti") indicate that a work belonging to Jacopo Comin, "Tintoretto," is part of its cultural heritage, of great value to the museum and the university city of La Plata. Over time, and perhaps due to the ambitious nature of this attribution, the original assertion was called into question. A comprehensive and complementary spectroscopic analysis using Raman, FTIR-ATR and SEM-EDX techniques serves as one of the information sources for the current study. Thus, cinnabar (HgS), lead white (2PbCO3.Pb(OH)2), calcite (CaCO3), gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O), and carbon black were determined in the artwork using the vibrational techniques while the presence of several components, such as alum (KAl(SO4)2·12H2O), calcite (CaCO3), green earths (K(MgFe2+)(Fe3+Al)(AlSi3,Si4)O10(OH)2), lead white (2PbCO3·Pb(OH)2), cerussite (PbCO3), goethite (FeO(OH)), lapis lazuli, mainly composed of lazurite (Na6Ca2(AlSiO4)6(SO4,S,S2,S3,Cl,OH)2), calcite (CaCO3) and pyrite (FeS2) as well as gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O), umber (α-FeOOH·MnO2), zinc white (ZnO) and lead sulfide (PbS) can be inferred from the determination of the elements using SEM-EDX studies. The tracking of the artwork and its journey to the city of La Plata, and the scanned X-Ray determination revealing hidden objects under the painting surface of the artwork are also dimensions taking into account in the present study. Thus, we can affirm the validity of the work, the Portrait of Melchior Michael, reconfirming and reattributing it to the colossal Jacopo Comin, Tintoretto.

Modernity at the Movies: Cinema-Going in Buenos Aires and Santiago, 1915–1945

Modernity at the Movies: Cinema-Going in Buenos Aires and Santiago, 1915–1945

The Creation of Modern Buenos Aires: Football, Civic Associations, Barrios, and Politics, 1912–1943

The Creation of Modern Buenos Aires: Football, Civic Associations, Barrios, and Politics, 1912–1943

Incorporating a mobile application to support communication about HPV testing among women and professionals: barriers and facilitators from the perspective of health professionals in a middle- and low-income setting in Argentina.

The delivery of positive Human papillomavirus (HPV) test results can have a psychosocial impact and act as a barrier for women to continue the cervical cancer (CC) prevention process. A previous formative research based on a woman's perspective indicated that a mobile app could be an acceptable and appropriate tool to help women obtain information and reduce fears related to a positive result. Based on these findings, we developed an app-based intervention that would function as a support for professionals who offer the HPV test and communicate their results. We report data on the perceptions of healthcare providers regarding the barriers and facilitators to the incorporation, in a low and middle-income context. Qualitative study based on individual semi-structured interviews with health professionals. All the professionals (n =13) took HPV and Pap test samples and provided information on HPV testing, in the public health system of Ituzaingó, Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina. The themes explored were selected and analysed using domains and constructs of Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). Practitioners had a positive assessment of the intervention through most included constructs: adaptability, compatibility, complexity, relative advantage, belief in the validity and robustness of the intervention, innovation source and knowledge and beliefs about the intervention. However, some potential barriers were also identified including: adaptability, tensions for change, relative priority and leadership engagement. Practitioners conditioned the intervention's success to specific adjustments of the app (weight and interface usability), legitimmated institutions' support, and clear and sustained health authorities' commitment and directions. Health professionals had a positive assessment of implementing an app to support the HPV test communication and information provision process, although they conditioned its effectiveness to specific adjustments. The results allow us to identify and develop recommendations for the app to be implemented effectively and sustained over time. The findings of this study have important implications not only for Argentina, but also for other low and middle-income countries, given that the implementation could be adapted, with the aim of improving communication between patients and health institutions in the CC prevention process.

“Polleras para cubrir los calzones”: Fashioning the Pseudonym in early Nineteenth-Century Argentina

Two political and literary magazines allegedly written by women were published under female pseudonyms during the first half of the nineteenth century in Buenos Aires. One, La Aljaba, was received as an authentic representation of female writing while the other, La Argentina, was understood as a male impersonation. There is, however, no historical evidence that proves whether La Argentina was written by a man or a woman. This article analyses the discourses created in La Argentina alongside its use of a gendered pseudonym to understand what kind of femininity it created and how it conversed with the political context at the time. Further, the analysis uncovers how the performance of femininity constructed through the pseudonym appropriates discourses on fashion in ways that made descriptions and repetitions of the attire fundamental for gendered representation.

NDM-5-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae ST258 in a university hospital in Argentina

Abstract Background A drastic increase in carbapenem resistance among Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates occurred during the period 2019–22. Three epidemiological changes could be evidenced: (i) NDM became the predominant carbapenemase; (ii) NDM-5 replaced NDM-1; and (iii) the emergence of NDM-producing K. pneumoniae ST258 (NDM-KpST258). Materials and methods Carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae isolates from patients on the ICU of a university hospital of Buenos Aires were studied during the period 2019–22. Identification was performed by MS and susceptibility by the Phoenix system (broth microdilution for colistin). Carbapenemase production was detected phenotypically. Molecular studies included PCR with specific primers and WGS (in some isolates). Results NDM-producing K. pneumoniae was statistically associated with the use of ceftazidime/avibactam between 2019 and April 2021, whereas in the period from May 2021 to December 2022, it seemed to be related to the presence of NDM-5-KpST258. A gradual increase in the number of urease-negative NDM-Kp-ST258 during 2019–22 was observed. The plasmid origin of NDM-5 was supported by its presence on the IncFII incompatibility group plasmid. Conclusions Our study describes the first outbreak of NDM5-KpST258 at an ICU in Argentina, remarkably associated with considerable changes in the carbapenemase epidemiology. The intrinsic characteristics of ST258 may contribute to increased spread of NDM in hospital settings, resembling KPC-2 dissemination.

Participatory clientelism: A socio-spatial approach to popular politics in Buenos Aires

Abstract What is the relationship between clientelism and political participation in popular urban neighborhoods? This article addresses the question based on qualitative research in two popular neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, drawing on participant observation and interviews with residents, activists, and party brokers. Adding to a growing literature on “participatory clientelism,” we argue for greater attention to the urban context through which this unfolds. To date, research into participatory clientelism has predominantly considered specific practices—participatory innovations or contentious politics—and been limited to the survival of the urban poor and the demand for political support by party brokers. While these are crucial practices, they are not exhaustive of the relations that sustain participatory clientelism, particularly in contexts of territorialized politics. Based on the socio-spatial approach of Henri Lefebvre, influential in urban studies, we define three interconnected dimensions of participatory clientelism and identify them in the cases under study.

THE POLITICS OF VIOLENT CONCATENATIONS

AbstractBased on three years of ethnographic fieldwork, this article examines face‐to‐face violent interactions in a high‐poverty squatter settlement in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Delving into the situational interactions and biographies of those who simultaneously exercise and suffer violence—victims and perpetrators—we illustrate in fine‐grained detail the concatenations of violence and their political dimensions. Violent concatenations are political in a twofold sense: (1) they are shaped by state (legal and illegal) interventions, and (2) they are understood by both victims and perpetrators as being caused by state actors either directly (in the form of police repression) or clandestinely (in the form of collusion with criminals).

Seasonal Occurrence of Southern Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) in Miramar, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, Between 2016 and 2019

Seasonal Occurrence of Southern Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) in Miramar, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, Between 2016 and 2019

PSXII-24 Use of a commercial blend of tannins as feed additive for feed lot cattle on large pen trial improves carcass weight and carcass feed conversion

Abstract The utilization of commercial tannin extracts as feed additives holds promise for enhancing animal performance and health within commercial feedlot settings. This study aimed to assess the impact of a commercial tannin blend, SilvaFeed BX (Indunor, Buenos Aires, Argentina), sourced from quebracho and chestnut extracts along with saponins, on the performance of beef cattle. Nelore bullocks (n = 1,198) were allocated to 12 pens in a completely randomized block design, stratified by initial date, at a commercial feedlot facility in Goias State, Brazil. Each pen served as an experimental unit, with 10 pens housing 100 animals each and 2 pens containing 99 animals each. The experimental treatments included a Control diet with monensin alone [25 ppm/kg dry matter (DM)] or treated with BX (0.7 g/kg DM) on top of the control diet. Individual body weights (BW) were recorded at processing (initial BW; IBW) and shipment (final BW; FBW), while DM intake (DMI) was averaged per pen throughout the study duration. Carcass weight (CW) was individually measured at the packing plant, and carcass gain was calculated as the discrepancy between carcass weight and the estimated initial carcass weight, set at 50% of the IBW, aligning with customary practices for negotiating feeder cattle in Brazil. Statistical analyses were conducted using Proc Glimmix in SAS, treating pens and treatments as fixed effects and blocks as random effects, with IBW considered as a covariate. Residuals were assessed for normality, identifying three outliers. Mean comparisons were facilitated using LSMEANS. The results indicated that BX-treated cattle exhibited increased FBW (502.17 vs. 493.64 kg, P = 0.0992), carcass weight (275.76 vs. 268.78 kg, P = 0.0343), total carcass gain (107.52 vs. 100.54 kg, P = 0.0343), and improved carcass feed conversion (10.46 vs. 11.45 kg DM/kg; Table). Despite numerical differences, the limited number of replications were not enough to detect significant differences between treatments in average daily gain (P = 0.2419), DMI (P = 0.5508), feed conversion (P = 0.2641), or dressing (P = 0.3757). In conclusion, BX, a blend of tannins, exhibits potential for enhancing carcass weight and feed conversion efficiency in Nelore bullocks. Further investigations employing larger sample sizes are warranted to comprehensively elucidate its effects on other performance parameters.

Bird metacommunities of urban parks in the pampean region, Argentina

Metacommunities are the set of local communities that are linked by the dispersion of potentially interacting species. The study of metacommunities is important to elucidate the relationship between processes that occur at different spatial scales. However, bird metacommunities in urban parks have been little studied. The objectives of this study were: 1) to analyze the relative role of species dispersal, environmental selection, and stochastic processes shaping urban bird metacommunities; and 2) to analyze the structure of the metacommunities of birds in urban parks. Bird surveys were made in 51 parks of six cities in Buenos Aires province, Argentina. To obtain the metacommunity structure, three elements were analyzed: coherence, turnover, and boundary clumping. We found that the metacommunity conforms to a clementsian structure, in which groups of species respond in a similar way to environmental gradients. The environmental and connectivity variables explained a greater proportion of the variance than the spatial variable. The composition of species was related to the location of the cities, the distance to the rural area, the distance to the urban center, the number of cars passing near parks, and habitat diversity. Due to the clementsian structure of metacommunities, they probably were structured under a species sorting and mass effect process. The number of cars and habitat diversity in the parks would be acting as environmental filters for bird species, while the distance to rural areas and the distance to the urban center would affect species dispersal to the parks. These findings emphasize the importance of maintaining and improving park connectivity and habitat diversity for bird species, managing them as cities grow.

Experience of an interdisciplinary management for pediatric Moyamoya disease: application of a novel Hemispheric Surgical Score.

The primary purpose of this study was to develop and implement a novel Hemispheric Surgical Score to guide the treatment of pediatric patients with Moyamoya disease (MMD). Additionally, we aimed to describe a comprehensive flowchart for the evaluation, treatment, and follow-up of these patients and to share our experience with the interdisciplinary management of a large pediatric cohort at a referral pediatric hospital. We conducted a retrospective observational study using medical records of patients diagnosed with MMD at the Pediatric Hospital "Prof. Dr. Juan P. Garrahan" in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from July 2013 to July 2023. From July 2016 onward, data were analyzed prospectively following the implementation of the Hemispheric Surgical Score and the flowchart. Evaluations included clinical, MRI, and angiographic criteria, and patients were managed by an interdisciplinary team. Demographic, clinical, and neuroimaging data were collected and analyzed. Eighty hemispheres from 40 patients were analyzed, with cerebral revascularization performed on 72 hemispheres from 37 patients. The Hemispheric Surgical Score and flowchart standardized treatment decisions, and reduced the need for invasive studies like angiographies for follow-up. The majority of patients (79.1%) had favorable outcomes, with complete disease progression arrest and no worsening of imaging nor clinical scores during a median follow-up of 35.8months. The Hemispheric Surgical Score and the comprehensive flowchart have improved the management of MMD in pediatric patients by standardizing treatment and reducing unnecessary invasive procedures. This interdisciplinary approach has led to better patient outcomes, highlighting the need for further validation in larger studies and comparisons of different revascularization techniques through randomized clinical trials.