DNA Barcoding analysis of seafood accuracy in Washington, D.C. restaurants

Indexación: Scopus.In Washington D.C., recent legislation authorizes citizens to test if products are properly represented and, if they are not, to bring a lawsuit for the benefit of the general public. Recent studies revealing the widespread phenomenon of seafood substitution across the United States make it a fertile area for consumer protection testing. DNA barcoding provides an accurate and cost-effective way to perform these tests, especially when tissue alone is available making species identification based on morphology impossible. In this study, we sequenced the 5' barcoding region of the Cytochrome Oxidase I gene for 12 samples of vertebrate and invertebrate food items across six restaurants in Washington, D.C. and used multiple analytical methods to make identifications. These samples included several ambiguous menu listings, sequences with little genetic variation among closely related species and one sequence with no available reference sequence. Despite these challenges, we were able to make identifications for all samples and found that 33% were potentially mislabeled. While we found a high degree of mislabeling, the errors involved closely related species and we did not identify egregious substitutions as have been found in other cities. This study highlights the efficacy of DNA barcoding and robust analyses in identifying seafood items for consumer protection.https://peerj.com/articles/3234

BRCA1 and BRCA2 founder mutations account for 78% of germline carriers among hereditary breast cancer families in Chile.

Identifying founder mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 in specific populations constitute a valuable opportunity for genetic screening. Several studies from different populations have reported recurrent and/or founder mutations representing a relevant proportion of BRCA mutation carriers. In Latin America, only few founder mutations have been described. We screened 453 Chilean patients with hereditary breast cancer for mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2. For recurrent mutations, we genotyped 11 microsatellite markers in BRCA1 and BRCA2 in order to determine a founder effect through haplotype analysis. We found a total of 25 mutations (6 novel) in 71 index patients among which, nine are present exclusively in Chilean patients. Our analysis revealed the presence of nine founder mutations, 4 in BRCA1 and 5 in BRCA2, shared by 2 to 10 unrelated families and spread in different regions of Chile. Our panel contains the highest amount of founder mutations until today and represents the highest percentage (78%) of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers. We suggest that the dramatic reduction of Amerindian population due to smallpox and wars with Spanish conquerors, a scarce population increase during 300 years, and the geographic position of Chile constituted a favorable scenario to establish founder genetic markers in our population

Impacto de Corto Plazo de Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research: Un Análisis Bibliométrico

Indexación: Web of Science; ScieloIn January 2007, the Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research was indexed by the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI). This paper reviews the research that has been published since 2007 by using records extracted from the Web of Science database. The papers published were mostly affiliated to researchers from Chile, and six out of the ten most-contributing countries were from Latin America. The analysis by institutions showed Universidad de Concepcion as the most prolific, although this result is not valid. A lack of standardization in the manner the Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIA) subscribed its address on each paper caused a disaggregation of the information. This was proven by the manual curation of each record that was affiliated to any of the centers belonging to INIA. The journal has a self-citation rate of 19.3%, value that is relatively high if compared to other journals from the same subject category listed on The Journal Citation Reports 2010. Finally, this work should be considered a bibliometric snapshot of the current situation of the journal that will serve as a benchmark when new evaluations are made in a few-years time.En enero 2007, la revista Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research fue indexada por el Institute of Scientific Information (ISI), por lo que este artículo analiza la investigación que ha sido publicada desde el ano 2007 utilizando los registros extraídos de la base de datos Web of Science. Los artículos publicados fueron mayormente afiliados a investigadores de Chile, siendo seis de los 10 países que más contribuyeron en artículos de Latinoamérica. Un análisis por institución mostró a la Universidad de Concepción como la más prolífica, aunque este resultado no es válido por una ausencia de estandarización en la manera que el Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIA) suscribe su dirección en cada artículo, lo que provoca disgregación de la información. Esto se verificó mediante la curación manual de cada registro que se encontraba afiliado a cualquiera de los centros que pertenecen a INIA. Esta revista tiene un grado de auto-citas de 19.3%, valor relativamente alto si se compara con revistas de la misma categoría de tópico que se encuentran listadas en Journal Citation Report 2010. Finalmente, este trabajo debe ser considerado como una visión bibliométrica de la situación actual de la revista que servirá como línea base para nuevas evaluaciones a realizarse en pocos anos más.http://ref.scielo.org/ff8v7

Arrival of Paleo-Indians to the Southern Cone of South America: New Clues from Mitogenomes

With analyses of entire mitogenomes, studies of Native American mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation have entered the final phase of phylogenetic refinement: the dissection of the founding haplogroups into clades that arose in America during and after human arrival and spread. Ages and geographic distributions of these clades could provide novel clues on the colonization processes of the different regions of the double continent. As for the Southern Cone of South America, this approach has recently allowed the identification of two local clades (D1g and D1j) whose age estimates agree with the dating of the earliest archaeological sites in South America, indicating that Paleo-Indians might have reached that region from Beringia in less than 2000 years. In this study, we sequenced 46 mitogenomes belonging to two additional clades, termed B2i2 (former B2l) and C1b13, which were recently identified on the basis of mtDNA control-region data and whose geographical distributions appear to be restricted to Chile and Argentina. We confirm that their mutational motifs most likely arose in the Southern Cone region. However, the age estimate for B2i2 and C1b13 (11–13,000 years) appears to be younger than those of other local clades. The difference could reflect the different evolutionary origins of the distinct South American-specific sub-haplogroups, with some being already present, at different times and locations, at the very front of the expansion wave in South America, and others originating later in situ, when the tribalization process had already begun. A delayed origin of a few thousand years in one of the locally derived populations, possibly in the central part of Chile, would have limited the geographical and ethnic diffusion of B2i2 and explain the present-day occurrence that appears to be mainly confined to the Tehuelche and Araucanian-speaking grou

Measure the Measure: the Impact of Differences in Pesticide MRLs on Chilean Fruit Exports to the EU

This paper advances the measurement of nontariff measures (NTMs) by discussing a framework for how to compare regulations. We argue that relative differences in SPS regulations trigger the impact on trade flows between trading partner countries and specifically look at maximum residue levels (MRLs) for pesticides in a case study on Chilean fruit exports to the EU. In order to capture the relative differences and stringency in tolerance levels of trading partners, a simple indicator is constructed and applied in an econometric analysis. In comparison to existing indices of regulatory heterogeneity, the depth of information generated by our indicator severely compromises its coverage. Further development of our heterogeneity index will need to aim at including elements of process standards and conformity assessment procedures

El efecto de las prácticas de gobierno corporativo sobre la valuación de mercado y políticas de pago de compañías chilenas

(Disponible en idioma inglés únicamente) En este trabajo nos preguntamos si las prácticas de conducción empresarial al nivel de compañía en un país dado inciden o no en la valuación de mercado de esas compañías. Esta cuestión es esencial para poder evaluar los beneficios potenciales que puede reportar a las empresas un cambio de sus prácticas, aún cuando las mismas no afecten las reglas en su país. El caso chileno presenta en particular al menos tres características interesantes que hacen que su estudio sea particularmente pertinente para otras economías emergentes. En primer lugar, la estructura empresarial en Chile presenta una propiedad altamente concentrada, un uso generalizado de estructuras piramidales para separar los derechos de control del flujo de efectivo y poca claridad en la identificación de la tenencia final. En segundo lugar, hace poco se promulgaron modificaciones de las leyes que regulan el mercado de valores y las sociedades mercantiles, con la intención de mejorar la conducción empresarial en Chile. Por último, el mercado de capitales de Chile es relativamente desarrollado y tiene ya más de 20 años con una participación considerable de inversionistas institucionales. Realizamos un análisis de regresión de las mediciones del desempeño empresarial y de la política de pagos sobre los indicadores de la gestión empresarial al nivel de compañía y una serie de variables de control. Verificamos cuidadosamente, mediante una amplia comprobación de validez, que nuestros resultados no se debieran a una influencia de variables omitidas, ni a una especificación y muestras particulares. También controlamos la causalidad inversa empleando dos características de la ley que rige la actividad de las sociedades mercantiles en Chile que brindan un instrumento exógeno de algunas de las prácticas de conducción empresarial de las empresas chilenas. Hallamos que las compañías que presentan una mayor coincidencia entre los derechos sobre el flujo de caja y el control tienden a ser sistemáticamente más valoradas por el mercado. Hemos interpretado este resultado como una señal de que el mercado de capitales de Chile penaliza los posibles conflictos de intereses entre los contralores y los accionistas minoritarios.

Water privatisation and restructuring in Latin America, 2007

A detailed survey of developments in water in south America, including the retreat of the multinationals, the development of public sector alternatives, and persistent problems with compensation claims and development bank policies