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Introducción: el ejercicio de la docencia universitaria por parte de estudiantes de Medicina ofrecería múltiples beneficios. Sin embargo, no hay evidencia de que mejore el desempeño en los exámenes estandarizados en el posgrado. El objetivo de este estudio fue describir la diferencia de los puntajes en el examen de residencias médicas municipales entre ayudantes y no ayudantes, y evaluar la autopercepción del efecto de ser ayudante sobre el desempeño en dicho examen y sobre las habilidades académicas. Métodos: estudio observacional, descriptivo, de corte transversal, con un muestreo por conveniencia de médicos participantes del examen de residencias médicas municipales de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (CABA) de 2018, a partir del listado oficial. Se excluyeron aquellos a quienes fue imposible contactar, que se negaran a participar o cuya identidad discrepara con la de la persona seleccionada para incluir en el estudio. Resultados: de los 3579 médicos que concursaron en el examen de residencias médicas básicas municipales de CABA 2018, se tomó una muestra aleatoria de 300 sujetos, de los cuales se contactó a 87. De ellos, 20 sujetos cumplían con criterios de exclusión; por lo tanto fueron 67 sujetos los que finalmente participaron del estudio. La proporción de respuestas con respecto a los sujetos que pudieron ser contactados mediante redes sociales fue 77%. El puntaje de examen entre los ayudantes fue de 32,3 ± 5,7 puntos mientras que entre los no ayudantes fue 29,5 ± 6,1 puntos. Entre los ayudantes, el 68% informó percibir que el hecho de haber realizado una ayudantía en el pregrado tuvo un efecto de levemente a muy positivo sobre su desempeño en el examen, un 76% refirió la profundización de conocimientos específicos, el 73% informó una mejoría en sus habilidades comunicacionales y el 59% una mayor capacidad para jerarquizar contenidos. Conclusión: el desarrollo de una actividad docente en el pregrado sería percibida por quienes la desarrollan como una actividad promotora de habilidades comunicacionales y de jerarquización de contenidos y, ulteriormente, como una influencia positiva en el desempeño académico en el examen de residencias médicas municipales. Estas conclusiones deben confirmarse con estudios futuros. (AU)

Introduction: medical students could benefit from teaching university courses. However, there is no evidence showing that this activity improves academic performance on standardized tests in graduate school. The objective of this study was to describe the differences in scores on the municipal medical residency exam between physicians who were teaching assistants and those who weren't, and to evaluate the self-perception of the effect of being a teaching assistant on the performance on this exam and on academic skills in general. Methods: this is an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study, with a convenience sample of physicians participating in the 2018 municipal medical residency exam of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA) based on official lists. Those who could not be contacted, refused to participate, or whose identity diverged from the person selected to include in the study, were excluded. Results: of the 3,579 physicians who participated in the basic municipal medical residency exam in CABA 2018, a random sample of 300 subjects was taken, of which 87 were contacted. Of those, 20 subjects met the exclusion criteria, having 67 subjects finally participating in the study. The proportion of subjects who could be contacted through social networks was 77%. The exam score among physicians who were teaching assistants was 32.3 ± 5.7 points while among the non-teaching assistants it was 29.5 ± 6.1 points. Among the teaching assistants, 68% perceived that the fact of having been a teaching assistant as an undergraduate had a slight to very positive effect on their performance in the exam, 76% referred the deepening of their specific knowledge on the subject they taught, 73% reported an improvement in their communication skills, and 59% referred a greater ability to rank content. Conclusions: undergraduate teaching would be perceived as an activity that promotes communication skills and ability to rank content and, therefore, as a positive influence on academic performance in the municipal medical residency exam. These conclusions need to be confirmed with future studies. (AU)

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Structural colors result from the physical interaction of light with organic materials of differing refractive indexes organized at nanoscale dimensions to produce significant interference effects. Because color properties emerge from these finely organized nanostructures, the production of structural coloration could respond to environmental factors and be developmentally more plastic than expected, functioning as an indicator of individual quality. However, there are many unknown factors concerning the function and mechanisms regulating structural coloration, especially relative to social environment. We hypothesized that social environment, in the form of competitive settings, can influence the developmental pathways involving production of feather structural coloration. We experimentally assessed the impact of social environment upon body condition, molt and spectral properties of two types of structural color that compose the nuptial plumage in blue-black grassquits: black iridescent plumage and white underwing patches. We manipulated male social environment during nine months by keeping individuals in three treatments: (1) pairs; (2) all-male groups; and (3) male-female mixed groups. All morphological characters and spectral plumage measures varied significantly through time, but only acquisition of nuptial plumage coverage and nuptial plumage color were influenced by social environment. Compared with males in the paired treatment, those in treatments with multiple males molted into nuptial plumage faster and earlier, and their plumage was more UV-purple-shifted. Our results provide experimental evidence that social context strongly influences development and expression of structural plumage. These results emphasize the importance of long-term experimental studies to identify the phenotypic consequences of social dynamics relative to ornament expression.

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The challenge hypothesis proposes that testosterone (T) elevation above what is needed for breeding is associated with social factors, and males possibly modulate their hormonal response to variations in population density and sex ratio. We investigated the role of social environment in altering testosterone levels and aggression in a tropical, seasonally breeding grassquit (Volatinia jacarina). We exposed males to three social conditions during 1 year: all-males treatment (six males), mixed treatment (three males-three females), and paired treatment (one male-one female). We quantified aggressiveness among males and T plasma concentration for each individual in each treatment monthly. We found that more aggressive interactions occurred in the all-males treatment than in the mixed treatment. The data also revealed that, coincident with these behavioral changes, the patterns of T variation through time in each treatment were markedly different. The all-males treatment exhibited an early increase in T concentration, which was sustained for a lengthy period with two distinctive peaks, and subsequently declined sharply. The mixed treatment presented an intermediate pattern, with more gradual increase and decrease in T levels. At the other extreme, the paired treatment presented a later rise in T concentration. We conclude that the more competitive environment, with higher density of males, caused the early and higher elevation in T level, thus the presence of competitors may influence the decision of how much a male should invest in reproduction. We suggest that the male's perception of his social environment ultimately mediates hormonal production and alters his reproductive strategy.

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