A biometric and ecologic comparison between Artemia from Mexico and Chile

BACKGROUND: A preliminary biometric and ecologic database for the brine shrimp Artemia from Mexico and Chile is presented. The area abounds in small and seasonal ponds and large inland lakes, the latter mainly located in Mexico, although relatively large and isolated lakes are found in complex hydrological settings in pre-high plateau areas of Chile. This paper summarizes research efforts aimed at the localization, characterization, and evaluation of the aquaculture potential of Artemia populations in Mexico and Chile, which exhibit great habitat diversity (ponds, salterns, coastal lagoons, sea arms, coastal and inland lakes), contrasting weather conditions and different levels of isolation and human intervention. RESULTS: This study covered locations between 29° north latitude (Baja California, Mexico) to 50° south latitude (Puerto Natales, Chile). Biological characteristics considered are species name, reproductive mode, cyst diameter, chorion thickness, and nauplius length, whereas ecological data include pond size, pH, salinity, temperature, and water ionic composition. Artemia franciscana is the only species found in Mexico, it exists together with A. persimilis in Chile, though separated geographically. Ecological differences in habitat exist between both regions but also within countries, a pattern particularly clear with regard to water composition. Surprisingly, a Mexican (Cuatro Ciénegas, A. franciscana) and a Chilean location (Torres del Paine, A. persimilis) share habitat characteristics, at least for the period when data were collected. The discriminat analysis for cyst diameter and nauplius length shows that Artemia from only one location match in cyst diameter with those from San Francisco Bay (SFB) (Point Lobos), and one (Marquez) is far apart from SFB and all the others. The Chilean locations (Pampilla, Cejar, Cahuil, Llamara, Yape) share cyst diameter, but tend to differ from SFB. The remaining Mexican locations (Juchitan, Ohuira, Yavaros) are well separated from all the others. With regard to nauplii length, populations tend to distribute in a relatively random manner, being Marquez the location differing the most in cyst diameter from SFB. CONCLUSION: This database will contribute to the knowledge of radiation centers and serves as a baseline for further biogeographic studies, population characterization, management, and monitoring of Artemia biodiversity. Likewise, the impact of colonization and translocations for aquaculture purposes can be better assessed with a baseline for reference. Mexico and Chile exemplify the need to increase and further integrate regional information to tackle fundamental problems underlying practical utilization of Artemia

Critical strain for dynamic recrystallisation. The particular case of steel

The knowledge of the flow behavior of metallic alloys subjected to hot forming operations has particular interest for metallurgists in the practice of industrial forming processes involving high temperatures (e.g., rolling, forging, and/or extrusion operations). Dynamic recrystallisation (DRX) occurs during high temperature forming over a wide range of metals and alloys, and it is known to be a powerful tool that can be used to control the microstructure and mechanical properties. Therefore, it is important to know, particularly in low stacking fault energy materials, the precise time at which DRX is available to act. Under a constant strain rate condition, and for a given temperature, such a time is defined as a critical strain (ec). Unfortunately, this critical value is not always directly measurable on the flow curve; as a result, different methods have been developed to derive it. Focused on carbon and microalloyed steels subjected to laboratory-scale testing, in the present work, the state of art on the critical strain for the initiation of DRX is reviewed and summarized. A review of the different methods and expressions for assessing the critical strain is also included. The collected data are well suited to feeding constitutive models and computational codes.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Using plant-based preparations to protect common bean against halo blight disease: the potential of nettle to trigger the immune system

Halo blight disease of beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola (Pph), is responsible for severe losses in crop production worldwide. As the current agronomic techniques used are not effective, it is necessary to search for new ones which may prevent disease in common bean. In this study, we challenged four plant-based preparations (PBPs), with no other agronomic uses, as they come from industrial waste (grapevine pomace (R-G) and hop residue (R-H)) or wild plants (Urtica dioica (U) and Equisetum sp. (E)), to be used as immune defense elicitors against Pph in common bean. After studying their inhibitory effect against Pph growth by bioassays, the two most effective PBPs (R-G and U) were applied in common bean plants. By measuring the total H2O2, lipid peroxidation, and antioxidant enzymatic activities, as well as the expression of six defense-related genes-PR1, WRKY33, MAPKK, RIN4, and PAL1-, it was observed that U-PBP application involved a signaling redox process and the overexpression of all genes, mostly PR1. First infection trials in vitro suggested that the application of U-PBP involved protection against Pph. The elicitation of bean defense with U-PBP involved a decrease in some yield parameters, but without affecting the final production. All these findings suggest a future use of U-PBP to diminish halo blight disease

Evaluación de la competencia profesional en personas con discapacidad intelectual. Una propuesta de adaptación de la metodología e instrumentos INCUAL para la igualdad de oportunidades

La incorporación efectiva al empleo de las personas con discapacidad intelectual requiere atender especialmente a los procesos de transición a la vida adulta, con la formación y la orientación laboral como estrategias relevantes. La posibilidad de demostrar lo que son capaces de hacer mediante pruebas adecuadas para ello, además de avanzar en la igualdad de oportunidades, representaría un proceso de habilitación para la inserción laboral. Desde esta perspectiva, tomando como referencia las orientaciones del Instituto Nacional de las Cualificaciones (INCUAL), se ha procedido a adaptar y aplicar los instrumentos de evaluación de competencias profesionales para determinar la capacidad de desempeño del perfil profesional de operaciones básicas de montaje del alumnado con discapacidad intelectual de un centro ocupacional. Los resultados confirman la validez de la adaptación, la ampliación de posibilidades de inserción laboral en la Comarca do Sar (Galicia), así como el efecto retroalimentador en los itinerarios formativos y de orientación laboral del centr

Reevaluation of the Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum genomes reveals misassembly, karyotype differences, and chromosomal rearrangements

Neospora caninum primarily infects cattle, causing abortions, with an estimated impact of a billion dollars on the worldwide economy annually. However, the study of its biology has been unheeded by the established paradigm that it is virtually identical to its close relative, the widely studied human pathogen Toxoplasma gondii. By revisiting the genome sequence, assembly, and annotation using third-generation sequencing technologies, here we show that the N. caninum genome was originally incorrectly assembled under the presumption of synteny with T. gondii. We show that major chromosomal rearrangements have occurred between these species. Importantly, we show that chromosomes originally named Chr VIIb and VIII are indeed fused, reducing the karyotype of both N. caninum and T. gondii to 13 chromosomes. We reannotate the N. caninum genome, revealing more than 500 new genes. We sequence and annotate the nonphotosynthetic plastid and mitochondrial genomes and show that although apicoplast genomes are virtually identical, high levels of gene fragmentation and reshuffling exist between species and strains. Our results correct assembly artifacts that are currently widely distributed in the genome database of N. caninum and T. gondii and, more importantly, highlight the mitochondria as a previously oversighted source of variability and pave the way for a change in the paradigm of synteny, encouraging rethinking the genome as basis of the comparative unique biology of these pathogens.INIA: FSSA_X_2014_1_10602

Eficacia de la alta presión hidrostática como tratamiento cuarentenario para mejorar la calidad de los frutos del mango infestados por la mosca de la fruta Mexicana Anastrepha ludens

High hydrostatic pressure (HPP) has been reported as an alternative quarantine process in fruits infested by Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann, Rhagoletis indifferens Curran and Cydia pomonella (L.). In Mexico and other Latin-American countries, the Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens Loew is one of the most important insects infesting mangoes, citrus, and other fruits. The present study aimed to determine the effect of pressure level and time on the survival of eggs and larvae of the Mexican fruit fly. Eggs and larvae were pressurized at 25, 50, 75, 100, or 150 MPa for 0, 5, 10 or 20 min at 25 8C. Ripe and green mangoes were also pressurized under the same conditions. On pressurized eggs of 1, 2, 3, and 4 days old, their ability to hatch was recorded. On pressurized first, second and third instars, the percentage of survival was registered. Furthermore, third instars were studied for their ability to pupate and to develop adults. The results showed that although most of eggs and larvae died at pressures lower than 100 MPa, some of them were able to survive even at 150 MPa, and a few third instars were able to pupate and to develop to adulthood. Green mangoes were affected by pressures above 75 MPa but they were more resistant than ripe mangoes. HPP treatments seem to be feasible as a quarantine process for mangoes; however, more studies, such as combining HPP with temperature treatments, are needed in order to decrease the pressure level to avoid fruit damageLa alta presión hidrostática ha sido descrita como un proceso de cuarentena alternativa en frutas infestadas por Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann, Rhagoletis indifferens Curran y Cydia pomonella (L.). En México y otros países Latinoamericanos, la mosca de la fruta mexicana Anastrepha ludens Loew es uno de los más importantes insectos que infestan los mangos, cítricos y otras frutas. El presente estudio tuvo como meta determinar el efecto del nivel de presión y tiempo sobre la supervivencia de huevos y larvas de la mosca de la fruta mexicana. Huevos y larvas se presurizaron a 25, 50, 75, 100, y 150 MPa durante 0, 5, 10, y 20 min a 25 8C. Mangos maduros y verdes también se presurizaron bajo las mismas condiciones. En huevos presurizados de uno, dos, tres y cuatro días de vida, se registró su capacidad para eclosionar. En primera, segunda y tercera etapa larvaria presurizada, el porcentaje de supervivencia también se registró. Además, en la tercera etapa larvaria se estudió su capacidad para salir de la crisálida y desarrollar adultos. Los resultados mostraron que aunque la mayoría de los huevos y larvas murieron a presiones por debajo de 100 MPa, algunos de ellos fueron capaces de sobrevivir aun a 150 MPa, y unas pocas larvas de tercera etapa fueron capaces de salir de la crisálida y desarrollar adultos. Los mangos verdes se vieron afectados por las presiones por encima de 75 MPa pero fueron más resistentes que los mangos maduros. Los tratamientos de alta presión hidrostática parecen ser un proceso viable como método cuarentenario para mangos, sin embargo, se necesitan más estudios tales como la combinación de alta presión hidrostática junto con tratamientos térmicos para disminuir los niveles de presión y evitar daños en la frutaThe authors are grateful to Fondo Mixto CONACYT –Gobierno del Estado de Tamaulipas for the financial support of this work (Project TAMPS-2003-C02-15), to CONACYT for the scholarship granted to author Hugo Ernesto CandelarioS

ReprOlive: a database with linked data for the olive tree (Olea europaea L.) reproductive transcriptome

Plant reproductive transcriptomes have been analyzed in different species due to the agronomical and biotechnological importance of plant reproduction. Here we presented an olive tree reproductive transcriptome database with samples from pollen and pistil at different developmental stages, and leaf and root as control vegetative tissues (http://reprolive.eez.csic.es). It was developed from 2,077,309 raw reads to 1,549 Sanger sequences. Using a pre-defined workflow based on open-source tools, sequences were pre-processed, assembled, mapped, and annotated with expression data, descriptions, GO terms, InterPro signatures, EC numbers, KEGG pathways, ORFs, and SSRs. Tentative transcripts (TTs) were also annotated with the corresponding orthologs in Arabidopsis thaliana from TAIR and RefSeq databases to enable Linked Data integration. It results in a reproductive transcriptome comprising 72,846 contigs with average length of 686 bp, of which 63,965 (87.8%) included at least one functional annotation, and 55,356 (75.9%) had an ortholog. A minimum of 23,568 different TTs was identified and 5,835 of them contain a complete ORF. The representative reproductive transcriptome can be reduced to 28,972 TTs for further gene expression studies. Partial transcriptomes from pollen, pistil, and vegetative tissues as control were also constructed. ReprOlive provides free access and download capability to these results. Retrieval mechanisms for sequences and transcript annotations are provided. Graphical localization of annotated enzymes into KEGG pathways is also possible. Finally, ReprOlive has included a semantic conceptualisation by means of a Resource Description Framework (RDF) allowing a Linked Data search for extracting the most updated information related to enzymes, interactions, allergens, structures, and reactive oxygen species.This work was supported by co-funding from the ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) and (i) Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación [grant numbers BFU2011-22779 to JDA, and TIN2011-25840 and TIN2014-58304-R to JFAM], and (ii) Plan Andaluz de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación [grant numbers P10-CVI-6075 to MGC, P10-AGR-6274 and P11-CVI-7487 to JDA, and P11-TIC-7529 and P12-TIC-1519 to JFAM].Peer reviewe

Dynamic Scaling in Diluted Systems Phase Transitions: Deactivation trough Thermal Dilution

Activated scaling is confirmed to hold in transverse field induced phase transitions of randomly diluted Ising systems. Quantum Monte Carlo calculations have been made not just at the percolation threshold but well bellow and above it including the Griffiths-McCoy phase. A novel deactivation phenomena in the Griffiths-McCoy phase is observed using a thermal (in contrast to random) dilution of the system.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, RevTe

Risk of unintentional injuries in children and adolescents with ADHD and the impact of ADHD medications: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been related to increased rates of unintentional injuries. However, the magnitude of the effect and to which extent variables such as sex, age or comorbidity can influence this relationship is unknown. Additionally, and importantly, it is unclear if, and to which degree, ADHD medications can decrease the number of unintentional injuries. Due to the amount of economic and social resources invested in the treatment of injuries, filling these gaps in the literature is highly relevant from a public health standpoint. Here, we present a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the relationship between ADHD and unintentional injuries and assess the impact of pharmacological treatment for ADHD Methods and analysis We will combine results from 114 bibliographic databases for studies relating ADHD and risk of injuries. Bibliographic searches and data extraction will be carried out independently by two researchers. The studies’ risk of bias will be assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Articles reporting ORs or HRs of suffering an injury in ADHD compared with controls (or enough data to calculate them) will be combined using Robust Variance Estimation, a method that permits to include multiple non-independent outcomes in the analysis. All analyses will be carried out in Stata. Age, sex and comorbid conduct disorders will be considered as potential causes of variance and their effect analysed through meta-regression and subgroup analysis. Sensitivity analyses will exclude articles with longer follow-ups, non-stringent definitions of ADHD or controls and statistically uncontrolled/controlled outcomes. Studies implementing a self-controlled case series methodology to investigate if ADHD drugs reduce the risk of injuries will be combined with a generalised linear mixed model using the Poisson distribution and a log link function