Caracterización del hábitat de Amoreuxia wrightii (Bixaceae), una especie en peligro de extinción en el noreste de México

Background and Aims: In Mexico, Amoreuxia wrightii is endangered according to NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010. In this study the characterization of natural populations of A. wrightii, which grow in two contrasting communities taking into account the canopy cover in the Tamaulipan thornscrub in northeastern Mexico, was performed by analysis of associated flora and physical and chemical properties of soils.Methods: In 2014, 10 sampling sites were established in two environments differentiated by vegetation structure: five sites in plant associations with dense vegetation cover and five sites in disturbed areas with bare soil. In each area the vegetation structure and edaphic variables were evaluated and a Canonical Correspondence Analysis was performed.Key results: According to the relationship with other species, A. wrightii was associated with pioneer species that emerge after disturbance, dominated by grasses like Aristida purpurea, Cenchrus ciliaris, Cynodon dactylon, Panicum obtusum, herbs such as Gutierrezia sarothrae, Gymnosperma glutinosum and Parthenium hysterophorus, and low shrubs like Acacia amentacea, A. berlandieri and Eysenhardtia texana. According to edaphic variables, it was observed that A. wrightii preferred clayey and silty soils, soils with slightly alkaline pH and high bulk density. No individual of A. wrightii was recorded at sites that had soils with high sand content and high content of organic matter.Conclusions: Amoreuxia wrightii was more abundant in areas with no coverage, devoid of vegetation, soils low in organic matter and high in pH, silt, clay and bulk density. According to the relationship with other species, it was associated with pioneer species, which emerge after a disturbance.Antecedentes y Objetivos: En México, Amoreuxia wrightii se encuentra en estatus de peligro de extinción de acuerdo a la NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010. En este estudio se realizó la caracterización de poblaciones naturales de A. wrightii, mediante un análisis de la flora asociada y las propiedades físicas y químicas de los suelos donde se desarrollan en dos comunidades contrastadas desde el punto de vista de la cobertura del dosel en el matorral tamaulipeco en el noreste de México.Métodos: En 2014 se establecieron 10 sitios de muestreo en dos ambientes diferenciados por la estructura de la vegetación: cinco sitios en asociaciones vegetales con cobertura vegetal densa y cinco sitios en áreas perturbadas con suelo desnudo. En cada área se evaluó la estructura vegetal y variables edáficas y se realizó un Análisis de Correspondencia Canónica.Resultados clave: De acuerdo a la relación con otras especies, A. wrightii se asoció con especies pioneras, que emergen después de un disturbio, con el dominio de pastos como Aristida purpurea, Cenchrus ciliaris, Cynodon dactylon, Panicum obtusum, especies de herbáceas Gutierrezia sarothrae, Gymnosperma glutinosum y Parthenium hysterophorus, así como arbustos de porte bajo como Acacia amentacea, A. berlandieri y Eysenhardtia texana. De acuerdo con las variables edáficas, se observó que A. wrightii prefiere suelos arcillosos y limosos, con suelos con pH ligeramente alcalinos y con densidad aparente alta. Ningún individuo de A. wrightii fue registrado en sitios que presentaron suelos con altos contenidos de arena y altos contenidos de materia orgánica.Conclusiones: Amoreuxia wrightii fue más abundante en áreas con nula cobertura, desprovistas de vegetación, sobre suelos con bajo contenido de materia orgánica y altos contenidos de pH, limo, arcilla y densidad aparente. De acuerdo a la relación con otras especies, se asoció con especies pioneras, que emergen después de un disturbio

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

Anales del III Congreso Internacional de Vivienda y Ciudad "Debate en torno a la nueva agenda urbana"

Acta de congresoEl III Congreso Internacional de Vivienda y Ciudad “Debates en torno a la NUEVa Agenda Urbana”, ha sido una apuesta de alto compromiso por acercar los debates centrales y urgentes que tensionan el pleno ejercicio del derecho a la ciudad. Para ello las instituciones organizadoras (INVIHAB –Instituto de Investigación de Vivienda y Hábitat y MGyDH-Maestría en Gestión y Desarrollo Habitacional-1), hemos convidado un espacio que se concretó con potencia en un debate transdisciplinario. Convocó a intelectuales de prestigio internacional, investigadores, académicos y gestores estatales, y en una metodología de innovación articuló las voces académicas con las de las organizaciones sociales y/o barriales en el Foro de las Organizaciones Sociales que tuvo su espacio propio para dar voz a quienes están trabajando en los desafíos para garantizar los derechos a la vivienda y los bienes urbanos en nuestras ciudades del Siglo XXI

Adelante / Endavant

Séptimo desafío por la erradicación de la violencia contra las mujeres del Institut Universitari d’Estudis Feministes i de Gènere "Purificación Escribano" de la Universitat Jaume

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of <i>Babesia bigemina</i> Attenuated Vaccine and Virulent Strains of Mexican Origin

Bovine babesiosis, caused by the protozoan Babesia bigemina, is one of the most important hemoparasite diseases of cattle in Mexico and the world. An attenuated B. bigemina strain maintained under in vitro culture conditions has been used as a live attenuated vaccine; however, the biological mechanisms involved in attenuation are unknown. The objective of this study was to identify, through a comparative transcriptomics approach, the components of the B. bigemina virulent parasites that are differentially expressed in vivo, as opposed to those expressed by B. bigemina attenuated vaccine parasites when inoculated into naïve cattle. The biological material under study was obtained by inoculating spleen-intact cattle with infected erythrocytes containing either the attenuated strain or a virulent field strain. After RNA extraction, transcriptomic analysis (RNA-seq) was performed, followed by bioinformatic Differential Expression (DE) analysis and Gene Ontology (GO) term enrichment. The high-throughput sequencing results obtained by analyzing three biological replicates for each parasite strain ranged from 9,504,000 to 9,656,000, and 13,400,000 to 15,750,000 reads for the B. bigemina attenuated and virulent strains, respectively. At least 519 differentially expressed genes were identified in the analyzed strains. In addition, GO analysis revealed both similarities and differences across the three categories: cellular components, biological processes, and molecular functions. The attenuated strain of B. bigemina derived from in vitro culture presents global transcriptomic changes when compared to the virulent strain. Moreover, the obtained data provide insights into the potential molecular mechanisms associated with the attenuation or pathogenicity of each analyzed strain, offering molecular markers that might be associated with virulence or potential vaccine candidates

Plant composition and structure of two post-livestock areas of Tamaulipan thornscrub, Mexico

Abstract Background The composition, structure and biological diversity of two regenerated areas after livestock activities in a Tamaulipan thornscrub vegetation from Northeast Mexico were evaluated. The regeneration of each area was evaluated with the establishment of 12 sampling sites of 50m2. From the data obtained ecological indexes such as: Importance Value Index and Diversity (alpha and beta) were evaluated. Results A total of 17 families, 40 genera and 42 species were registered, the most representative family was Fabaceae with 11 spp. The intensive livestock area had 36 species; a Margalef index of 4.44 and a 1.24 Shannon index, while the extensive livestock area had 32 species, a Margalef index of 4.24 and a 2.16 Shannon index. The communities evaluated have a (48%) mean similarity. Conclusions 1) Regenerated communities after livestock use showed higher richness of species and alpha diversity. 2) Evaluated communities have a mean similarity of (48%). 3) Even after 25 years of regeneration the most dominant species was Cenchrus ciliaris that is used for cattle forage

Biodiversidad en la cuenca del Orinoco. Bases científicas para la identificación de áreas prioritarias para la conservación y uso sostenible de la biodiversidad

Es un placer para el Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt presentar a la comunidad científica, conservacionista y autoridades ambientales de Colombia y Venezuela la obra Biodiversidad de la cuenca del Orinoco: bases científicas para la identificación de áreas prioritarias para la conservación y el uso sostenible de la biodiversidad. Este libro es fruto de un esfuerzo de una década de trabajo y recoge numerosos proyectos de carácter institucional que han venido desarrollándose en la Orinoquia, incluyendo el Plan de acción en biodiversidad para la cuenca del Orinoco (2005-2015), además de los resultados de reuniones técnicas de carácter binacional

Reproducibility of fluorescent expression from engineered biological constructs in E. coli

We present results of the first large-scale interlaboratory study carried out in synthetic biology, as part of the 2014 and 2015 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competitions. Participants at 88 institutions around the world measured fluorescence from three engineered constitutive constructs in E. coli. Few participants were able to measure absolute fluorescence, so data was analyzed in terms of ratios. Precision was strongly related to fluorescent strength, ranging from 1.54-fold standard deviation for the ratio between strong promoters to 5.75-fold for the ratio between the strongest and weakest promoter, and while host strain did not affect expression ratios, choice of instrument did. This result shows that high quantitative precision and reproducibility of results is possible, while at the same time indicating areas needing improved laboratory practices.Peer reviewe