Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

Gas-Phase Photocatalytic Nitrogen Conversion over Nanostructured Metal-Modified Fe2O3: The Role of Surface Chemistry, Band Alignment, and Hydrogen Activation

Abstract Photocatalytic nitrogen conversion over iron oxide-based materials remains challenging, particularly under gas-phase conditions, where reaction pathways and product distributions are poorly understood. Herein, nanostructured Fe2O3 and metal-modified Fe2O3 photocatalysts...

Prophage ΦESI promotes competitive dominance in the emergent Salmonella serovar Infantis lineage

ABSTRACT The global emergence of multidrug-resistant Salmonella enterica serovar Infantis has been largely attributed to the pESI megaplasmid; however, additional factors contributing to the ecological success of this lineage remain poorly understood. Here, we characterize a phag...

Do Latino Populations Have a Distinct Pain Sensitivity? A Quantitative Sensory Testing Study in Chilean Healthy Volunteers

BACKGROUND: Quantitative sensory testing (QST) interprets somatosensory function against normative data, most commonly from the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain (DFNS), based on European volunteers. Whether these reference values describe admixed Latin American populat...

Evolution and Detection of β-Lactamases in Helicobacter pylori Isolates from High- and Low-Risk Southwestern Colombian Areas for Gastric Cancer

Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide, with Helicobacter pylori infection recognized as its main risk factor. Eradication therapy is the cornerstone of GC prevention; however, increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) threatens the...

Environmental noise exposure partially accounts for the association between socioeconomic status and neural encoding of speech

Socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with variability in neural speech encoding as indexed by the frequency-following response (FFR), yet the mechanisms underlying this association remain poorly understood. Environmental noise exposure represents a plausible pathway, gi...

The Simons Observatory: Development of a Pipeline to Detect Rapid Transients in Time-Ordered Data

We introduce a method for detecting astrophysical transients evolving on timescales of milliseconds to minutes using cosmic microwave background (CMB) survey telescopes. While previous transient searches in CMB data operate in map space, our pipeline directly processes the raw ti...

Co-creation with older adults in undergraduate design education: illustrative evidence from two Chilean cases in the Global South

This study explores the role of co-creation with older adults in undergraduate design education in Chile using a multi-case illustrative design. Two educational experiences that incorporated participatory design approaches are examined: a short-term User-Centered Design (UCD) wor...

Soil Microeukaryote Diversity in the Crop Fields of Panama

Soil microeukaryotic communities are essential for nutrient cycling and the maintenance of soil fertility, yet their diversity in tropical agricultural systems remains poorly characterized. In this study, high-throughput metabarcoding of the V4 region of the 18S rRNA gene was use...

Horizontal mitochondrial transfer and mitochondrial transplantation in skin: protection against UVR-induced ROS damage and enhancement of cell proliferation and wound healing

Skin homeostasis, protection against ultraviolet radiation (UVR), and wound repair depend on coordinated interactions among melanocytes, keratinocytes, and fibroblasts. Horizontal mitochondrial transfer (HMT) is a naturally occurring form of intercellular communication in which m...

Contrasting water stress responses of Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc grapevines: Implications for postveraison irrigation

Understanding how stomatal regulation relates to plant hydraulic traits and whole-plant performance is critical for improving water management in grapevines. This study evaluated whether (i) cultivar differences in stomatal sensitivity are linked to leaf hydraulic traits, (ii) th...

A review of autonomous and low cost sensor systems for surface water quality monitoring with implications for local decision making

Preserving water quality has become a critical priority due to the increasing pressure on water resources from population growth, production activities and climate change. This article reviews recent studies on water quality monitoring in lakes, rivers and reservoirs, with a focu...

Gas absorption of soft X-rays strongly impacts the redshift distribution of dark Fast X-ray Transients

Abstract The progenitors of many Fast X-ray Transients (FXTs) and those of γ-ray bursts (GRBs) are strongly linked. Given that ”dark” GRBs are typically found to be events suffering from enhanced extinction in the host galaxy, we investigate the nature of ”dark” FXTs. However, un...

Artificial intelligence, judicial archives, and transitional justice: analysis of the Quiñones Case in Chile

This article analyzes the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for reconstructing historical truth from the archives of Transitional Justice (TJ) in Chile, focusing on the Quiñones Case – a forced disappearance of 1976 documented across 13,283 judicial records. Through a sociotech...

Late Holocene environmental dynamics and their influence on human occupation in the Santiago basin (33°S), Central Chile

Fluvial-alluvial deposits provide high-resolution records for reconstructing paleoenvironments and deciphering archaeological site-formation processes. Despite their prevalence in the Mediterranean-climate region of central Chile, a significant research gap persists in linking pr...

Industrial tourism: how visitor heterogeneity shapes behavioural intention through sustainability perceptions

Purpose This study aims to examine the role of sustainability perceptions in explaining social acceptance and future willingness to engage in industrial tourism in territories characterised by strong productive identities. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on survey data from 4...

MPNN-Guided Redesign of PET Hydrolases with Enhanced Catalytic Activity below the PET Glass Transition Temperature

Abstract Enzymatic depolymerization of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) presents a sustainable route for plastic circularity, but its industrial viability is disadvantaged by the need for thermostable enzymes active under mild, energy-efficient conditions. While polyester hydrola...

Noninvasive surrogate endpoints in MASH trials: current perspectives and challenges

Abstract Background Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a leading cause of cirrhosis and liver-related morbidity. Current regulatory pathways rely on histology and long-term clinical outcomes, but repeated liver biopsy is noninvasive and poorly reproducible...

Magnetic induction for accelerated water evaporation in cold asphalt mixtures: large-scale evaluation and life cycle assessment

Cold asphalt mixtures are considered a sustainable alternative to hot asphalt mixtures. However, their long curing times and lower durability remain major barriers to their implementation. The objective of this work was to evaluate the mechanical, technical, environmental and eco...

Windows of change as precursors to changing travel behaviour aligned with sustainable mobility

There is an increasing focus on ways in which we can achieve behavioural change associated with improved sustainability outcomes in the transport sector. In societies where the car is the dominant passenger transport mode with all of its associated interpretations of convenience,...

Transient cartilages and interdigital vasculature organization in the embryonic duck foot

Abstract The evolution of webbed limbs represents a recurrent adaptation to aquatic life in tetrapods, facilitated by the dynamics of embryonic digit development. Digits form at the distal tip of the limb bud as cartilage condensations surrounded by mesenchymal cells, a process d...