Editorial: recent advancements on the development and ripening of Mediterranean fruits and tree crops

The Mediterranean basin and other Mediterranean-type ecosystems (MTE) are home to many tree crops domesticated and adapted well to their environment. Several of them present specific development and ripening traits that challenge established models. Climate changes that are occurring in the Mediterranean area and in other MTE tends to aggravate the already irregular rainfall and temperature patterns, posing detrimental outcomes on crop performance, productivity, and changes in fruit ripening. With these climate changes, one would expect changes in the fruits and tree crops components growing in these ecosystems. Currently, we are experiencing a tremendous advance in the technology that allows researchers to study in-depth the basic phenomenon and find significant novel data to establish guidelines for new cultural practices, breeding programs, and variety selection that can better adapt to the changing conditions. The goal of this Research Topic was to highlight recent studies on the anatomical, physiological, metabolomic, and genomic processes occurring throughout the development and ripening of fruits and tree crops grown in the Mediterranean Basin and MTE, from field until postharvest. Since many of them are perennial species, they are subjected to adverse environmental conditions throughout their entire life cycle. Thus, the effect of cultural practices, varying environmental factors, as well as the impact of the various stresses on the performance of these tree crops were also acknowledged.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Hemoperitoneum secondary to sigmoid diverticulitis

Colonic diverticular disease is the term to describe the presence of an uninflamed diverticulum of the colon. It is considered a common disease, characterized by the formation of false diverticula in the colonic wall at points of weakness of that, its prevalence increases with age and a minority of patients affected by this disease develops acute diverticulitis. Its complications range from abscess or phlegmon, fistula formation, to intestinal obstruction and peritonitis. However, the development of spontaneous hemoperitoneum secondary to acute diverticular disease is an unusual form of presentation and therefore scarcely reported in the literature. Here is presented a case with a hemoperitoneum secondary to colonic diverticular perforation

Use of a flow flow balance method for the evaluation of the hydrologic behavior of the wetland "ciénaga de Cachimbero"

RESUMEN: La ciénaga del Cachimbero, localizada en el municipio de Cimitarra, Santander, perteneciente a uno de los complejos de humedales inventariados por el Ministerio del Medio Ambiente y caracterizados como palustres, presenta valores ecológicos y ambientales de importancia regional. En este trabajo se realizó una aproximación conceptual y experimental a la hidrología de la ciénaga, determinando los componentes principales del balance hídrico y planteando un esquema de evaluación temporal. En este marco se implementó un esquema de observación y análisis de las variables hidrológicas, que permitió la construcción de un modelo de balances de flujo. Los controles básicos corresponden al régimen de lluvias en la cuenca tributaria, las características morfométricas del vaso, los procesos evapotranspirativos y las características del flujo en el caño de conexión con el río Magdalena cuyo nivel establece un control hidráulico aguas abajo. El principal objetivo fue formular un modelo operativo, a escala diaria, del funcionamiento hidrológico natural de la ciénaga, que permitió predecir los patrones temporales de variación de niveles y volúmenes de ésta.ABSTRACT: The Wetland "ciénaga de Cachimbero", located in the municipality of Cimitarra, Santander, has ecological and environmental importance for the region. It has been inventoried by the Ministry of the Environment and been catalogued as Palustral. A combined modeling and experimental approach to the hydrology of the wetland was carried out aiming at establishing a temporal evaluation scheme; the principal components of the water balance were determined. A scheme of observation and analysis of the hydrological variables, allowing the modeling of the flow balance, was implemented. The main objective of this work was then to formulate a daily-scale operative model of the natural hydrology behavior of the wetland aimed at the prediction of the temporal patterns of the water level and volume variations. It was found that the hidrology behavior is primarily controlled by the rain patterns, the morphometric characteristics of the basin (bathymetry), the evapotranspiration processes, and the flow patterns of the river that communicates the wetland with the Magdalena rive

Predicting the Impact of Climate Change on the Distribution of Rhipicephalus sanguineus in the Americas

Climate change may influence the incidence of infectious diseases including those transmitted by ticks. Rhipicephalus sanguineus complex has a worldwide distribution and transmits Rickettsial infections that could cause high mortality rates if untreated. We assessed the potential effects of climate change on the distribution of R. sanguineus in the Americas in 2050 and 2070 using the general circulation model CanESM5 and two shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs), SSP2-4.5 (moderate emissions) and SSP2-8.5 (high emissions). A total of 355 occurrence points of R. sanguineus and eight uncorrelated bioclimatic variables were entered into a maximum entropy algorithm (MaxEnt) to produce 50 replicates per scenario. The area under the curve (AUC) value for the consensus model (\u3e0.90) and the partial ROC value (\u3e1.28) indicated a high predictive capacity. The models showed that the geographic regions currently suitable for R. sanguineus will remain stable in the future, but also predicted increases in habitat suitability in the Western U.S., Venezuela, Brazil and Bolivia. Scenario 4.5 showed an increase in habitat suitability for R. sanguineus in tropical and subtropical regions in both 2050 and 2070. Habitat suitability is predicted to remain constant in moist broadleaf forests and deserts but is predicted to decrease in flooded grasslands and savannas. Using the high emissions SSP5-8.5 scenario, habitat suitability in tropical and subtropical coniferous forests and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands was predicted to be constant in 2050. In 2070, however, habitat suitability was predicted to decrease in tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and increase in tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests. Our findings suggest that the current and potential future geographic distributions can be used in evidence-based strategies in the design of control plans aimed at reducing the risk of exposure to zoonotic diseases transmitted by R. sanguineus

Efecto de adicionar ácido ascórbico al medio de vitrificación de folículos preantrales bovinos

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of adding ascorbic acid (AA) to the vitrification medium of bovine preantral follicles (PFs) subjected previously to cooling at 4 °C for 4 h or 24 h. Ovaries were collected from Nelore heifers at 14 months of age. In the laboratory, ovarian fragments were removed from the cortical region and distributed to fragments as fresh control (C0h), and fragments to cooling at 4 ºC for 4 and 24 hours in TCM-199 plus HEPES and antibiotics. Of the cooled fragments, two were fixed as controls for each cooling time (C4h, C24h), and the remaining fragments were distributed in four vitrification treatments, using the TCM-199 medium associated with ethylene glycol and dimethyl sulfoxide (V), sucrose (VSUC) or ascorbic acid (VAA), and the treatment with ethylene glycol, dimethyl sulfoxide, sucrose and AA (VSUC+AA). After 72 h, fragments were warmed and fixed for histological analysis and mechanical follicular isolation. No difference (p>0.05) between C0h and C4h for morphologically normal PFs was detected (99.3 and 96.0%, respectively). Vitrification reduced the morphological integrity and follicular viability in all treatments compared to C0h; nevertheless, VAA treatment maintained the follicular viability like C24h (p>0.05). It is concluded that bovine PFs were conserved efficiently at 4 °C during 4 h, and the addition of ascorbic acid to the vitrification medium improved survival rates and kept the morphological integrity of the follicles.El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el efecto de la adición de ácido ascórbico (AA) al medio de vitrificación de folículos preantrales (FPs) bovinos previamente enfriados a 4 °C durante 4 o 24 h. Se recolectaron ovarios de novillas Nelore a los 14 meses de edad. En el laboratorio se extrajeron fragmentos de ovario de la región cortical y se distribuyeron a fragmentos para control fresco (C0h), y fragmentos para refrigeración a 4 ºC por 4 y 24 horas en TCM-199 más HEPES y antibióticos. De los fragmentos enfriados, dos se fijaron como controles para cada tiempo de enfriamiento (C4h, C24h), y los restantes se distribuyeron en cuatro tratamientos de vitrificación, utilizando el medio TCM-199 asociado con etilenglicol y dimetilsulfóxido (V), sacarosa (VSUC) o ácido ascórbico (VAA), y el tratamiento con etilenglicol, dimetilsulfóxido, sacarosa y AA (VSUC+AA). Después de 72 h, los fragmentos se calentaron y fijaron para el análisis histológico y el aislamiento folicular mecánico. No se detectó diferencia (p>0.05) entre C0h y C4h para FPs morfológicamente normales (99.3 y 96.0%, respectivamente). La vitrificación redujo la integridad morfológica y la viabilidad folicular en todos los tratamientos en comparación con C0h; sin embargo, el tratamiento VAA mantuvo la viabilidad folicular similar a C24h (p>0.05). Se concluye que los FAs bovinos se conservaron eficientemente a 4 °C durante 4 h, y la adición de ácido ascórbico al medio de vitrificación mejoró las tasas de supervivencia y mantuvo la integridad morfológica folicular

Phylodynamics of vampire bat-transmitted rabies in Argentina

Common vampire bat populations distributed from Mexico to Argentina are important rabies reservoir hosts in Latin America. The aim of this work was to analyse the population structure of the rabies virus (RABV) variants associated with vampire bats in the Americas and to study their phylodynamic pattern within Argentina. The phylogenetic analysis based on all available vampire bat-related N gene sequences showed both a geographical and a temporal structure. The two largest groups of RABV variants from Argentina were isolated from northwestern Argentina and from the central western zone of northeastern Argentina, corresponding to livestock areas with different climatic, topographic and biogeographical conditions, which determined their dissemination and evolutionary patterns. In addition, multiple introductions of the infection into Argentina, possibly from Brazil, were detected. The phylodynamic analysis suggests that RABV transmission dynamics is characterized by initial epizootic waves followed by local enzootic cycles with variable persistence. Anthropogenic interventions in the ecosystem should be assessed taking into account not only the environmental impact but also the potential risk of disease spreading through dissemination of current RABV lineages or the emergence of novel ones associated with vampire bats.Fil: Torres, Carolina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Microbiología, Inmunología y Biotecnología. Cátedra de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Lema, C.. Dirección Nacional de Instituto de Investigación. Administración Nacional de Laboratorio e Instituto de Salud; ArgentinaFil: Gury Dohmen, F.. Instituto de Zoonosis “Dr. Luis Pasteur”; ArgentinaFil: Beltran, F.. Instituto de Zoonosis “Dr. Luis Pasteur”; ArgentinaFil: Novaro, L.. Ministerio de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimento. Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria; ArgentinaFil: Russo, S.. Ministerio de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimento. Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria; ArgentinaFil: Freire, M. C.. Dirección Nacional de Instituto de Investigación. Administración Nacional de Laboratorio e Instituto de Salud; ArgentinaFil: Velasco Villa, A.. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Estados UnidosFil: Mbayed, Viviana Andrea. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Microbiología, Inmunología y Biotecnología. Cátedra de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Cisterna , D. M.. Ministerio de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimento. Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria; Argentin

The North Icelandic Jet and its relationship to the North Icelandic Irminger Current

Author Posting. © The Authors, 2017. This article is posted here by permission of Sears Foundation for Marine Research for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Marine Research 75 (2017): 605-639, doi:10.1357/002224017822109505.Shipboard hydrographic and velocity sections are used to quantify aspects of the North Icelandic Jet (NIJ), which transports dense overflow water to Denmark Strait, and the North Icelandic Irminger Current (NIIC), which imports Atlantic water to the Iceland Sea. The mean transports of the two currents are comparable, in line with previous notions that there is a local overturning cell in the Iceland Sea that transforms the Atlantic water to dense overflow water. As the NIJ and NIIC flow along the north side of Iceland, they appear to share a common front when the bottom topography steers them close together, but even when they are separate there is a poleward flow inshore of the NIJ. The interannual variability in salinity of the inflowing NIIC is in phase with that of the outflowing NIJ. It is suggested, however, that the NIIC signal does not dictate that of the NIJ. Instead, the combination of liquid and solid freshwater flux from the east Greenland boundary can account for the observed net freshening of the NIIC to the NIJ for the densest half of the overturning circulation in the northwest Iceland Sea. This implies that the remaining overturning must occur in a different geographic area, consistent with earlier model results. The year-to-year variability in salinity of the NIJ can be explained by applying annual anomalies of evaporation minus precipitation over the Iceland Sea to a one-dimensional mixing model. These anomalies vary in phase with the wind stress curl over the North Atlantic subpolar gyre, which previous studies have shown drives the interannual variation in salinity of the inflowing NIIC.Funding for the project was provided by the National Science Foundation under grants OCE-1558742 (RSP, MAS, DJT, CN), OCE-1433170 (MAS), and OCE-0959381 (DM); the Norwegian Research Council under grant agreement no. 231647 (KV); the Bergen Research Foundation (KV); the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7 2007-2013) under grant agreement 308299 (NACLIM project, KV, HV, and SJ); and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (GWKM)