Diet of Crotalus enyo (Serpentes: viperidae) from the Baja California Cape Region, Mexico

Crotalus enyo is a rattlesnake endemic to Baja California peninsula, Mexico. The natural history of this species is poorly known, so the goal of this study was to determine the diet of C. enyo in the Cape Region, an area with different conditions than the rest of the peninsula. We analyzed the stomach contents of 24 specimens obtained during 2010-2013, and identified the ingested prey. The diet of C. enyo consists of rodents (83.34%) and lizards (16.66%), although presents a diverse diet, the data suggest C. enyo is a specialist predator at Cape Region. We didn’t find differences in diet composition between sexes, site of capture, or season. This study documents three new prey items in the diet of C. enyo: the Orange-Throated Whiptail (Aspidocelis hyperythra), the Cape Spiny-Tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura hemilopha) and Hunsaker’s Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus hunsakerii)

Diet of Crotalus enyo (Serpentes: viperidae) from the Baja California Cape Region, Mexico

Crotalus enyo is a rattlesnake endemic to Baja California peninsula, Mexico. The natural history of this species is poorly known, so the goal of this study was to determine the diet of C. enyo in the Cape Region, an area with different conditions than the rest of the peninsula. We analyzed the stomach contents of 24 specimens obtained during 2010-2013, and identified the ingested prey. The diet of C. enyo consists of rodents (83.34%) and lizards (16.66%), although presents a diverse diet, the data suggest C. enyo is a specialist predator at Cape Region. We didn’t find differences in diet composition between sexes, site of capture, or season. This study documents three new prey items in the diet of C. enyo: the Orange-Throated Whiptail (Aspidocelis hyperythra), the Cape Spiny-Tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura hemilopha) and Hunsaker’s Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus hunsakerii).Crotalus enyo is a rattlesnake endemic to Baja California peninsula, Mexico. The natural history of this species is poorly known, so the goal of this study was to determine the diet of C. enyo in the Cape Region, an area with different conditions than the rest of the peninsula. We analyzed the stomach contents of 24 specimens obtained during 2010-2013, and identified the ingested prey. The diet of C. enyo consists of rodents (83.34%) and lizards (16.66%), although presents a diverse diet, the data suggest C. enyo is a specialist predator at Cape Region. We didn’t find differences in diet composition between sexes, site of capture, or season. This study documents three new prey items in the diet of C. enyo: the Orange-Throated Whiptail (Aspidocelis hyperythra), the Cape Spiny-Tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura hemilopha) and Hunsaker’s Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus hunsakerii)

CONTROL BASED ON NUMERICAL METHODS AND RECURSIVE BAYESIAN ESTIMATION IN A CONTINUOUS ALCOHOLIC FERMENTATION PROCESS

Biotechnological processes represent a challenge in the control field, due to their high nonlinearity. In particular, continuous alcoholic fermentation from Zymomonas mobilis (Z.m) presents a significant challenge. This bioprocess has high ethanol performance, but it exhibits an oscillatory behavior in process variables due to the influence of inhibition dynamics (rate of ethanol concentration) over biomass, substrate, and product concentrations. In this work a new solution for control of biotechnological variables in the fermentation process is proposed, based on numerical methods and linear algebra. In addition, an improvement to a previously reported state estimator, based on particle filtering techniques, is used in the control loop. The feasibility estimator and its performance are demonstrated in the proposed control loop. This methodology makes it possible to develop a controller design through the use of dynamic analysis with a tested biomass estimator in Z.m and without the use of complex calculations

The Mexican Patch-nosed Snake, Salvadora mexicana (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854; Squamata: Colubridae): a new state record for Zacatecas, Mexico, and a new prey species

Mexico, Zacatecas, Municipality of Valparaiso, ca. 2 km (airline) west of San Juan Capistrano, (22.637258° N; 104.118608° W [WGS84]; 1249 m elevation), 18 July 2017. Collected by Jorge A. Bañuelos-Alamillo. The snake was deposited in the Vertebrate Collection at Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes (CZUAA-REP-690); a photo voucher is also available at the San Diego Natural History Museum (SDSNH_HerpPC_05366). Adult female (SVL= 900 mm, TL= 380 mm), and had 17 midbody dorsal scales, 188 ventral scales, 106 subcaudals, nine supralabials, 11 infralabials, two loreal scales, one preocular, and three postoculars on both sides (Fig. 1-A). The snake was road-killed near a river within dry forest vegetation and had recently consumed an adult male Aspidoscelis gularis scalaris ingested headfirst.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

The Mexican Patch-nosed Snake, Salvadora mexicana (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854; Squamata: Colubridae): a new state record for Zacatecas, Mexico, and a new prey species

Mexico, Zacatecas, Municipality of Valparaiso, ca. 2 km (airline) west of San Juan Capistrano, (22.637258° N; 104.118608° W [WGS84]; 1249 m elevation), 18 July 2017. Collected by Jorge A. Bañuelos-Alamillo. The snake was deposited in the Vertebrate Collection at Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes (CZUAA-REP-690); a photo voucher is also available at the San Diego Natural History Museum (SDSNH_HerpPC_05366). Adult female (SVL= 900 mm, TL= 380 mm), and had 17 midbody dorsal scales, 188 ventral scales, 106 subcaudals, nine supralabials, 11 infralabials, two loreal scales, one preocular, and three postoculars on both sides (Fig. 1-A). The snake was road-killed near a river within dry forest vegetation and had recently consumed an adult male Aspidoscelis gularis scalaris ingested headfirst.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

Preparation, Crystal Structure, Thermal Analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Optical Band-Gaps of Cu2GeTe4 and Cu2SnTe4 Alloys

Polycrystalline samples (weight ~ 1g) of Cu 2 GeTe 4 and Cu 2 SnTe 4 alloys were prepared by the usual melt and anneal method and the products characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Optical Diffuse Reflectance UV / VIS / NIR Spectroscopytechniques. It was found that: a) Cu 2 GeTe 4 and Cu 2 SnTe 4 crystallize in an orthorhombic structure (sg Imm2; N o44) with lattice parameters a = 5.9281 (4) Å, b = 4.2211 (6) Å, c = 12.645 (5) Å and a = 6.0375 (6) Å, b = 4.2706 (3) Å, c = 12.844 (1 ) Å, respectively; b) both alloys show two thermal transitions: 762 and 636K upon heating and; 700 and 578K upon cooling for Cu 2 GeTe 4 ; 702 and 636K upon heating and; 650 and 590K upon cooling for Cu 2 SnTe 4 ; c) both alloys present large deviations of stoichiometry for the cations Cu (~ 35%), Ge (7.2%) and Sn (26.4%) and minor deviation within the experimental error, for the anion Te; and, d) the measured optical band gaps were 0.63 and 0.53 eV for Cu 2 SnTe 4 and Cu 2 GeTe 4 , respectively.Polycrystalline samples (weight ~ 1 g) of the Cu 2 GeTe 4 and Cu 2 SnTe 4 alloys were prepared by the melting and annealing method and the products characterized by the techniques of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Thermal Differential Analysis (ATD). ), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and UV / VIS / CIR diffuse optical reflectance spectroscopy. It was found that: a) Cu 2 GeTe 4 and Cu 2 SnTe 4 crystallize in an orthorhombic structure (ge Imm2; N o44) with network parameters a = 5.9281 (4) Å, b = 4.2211 (6) Å, c = 12.645 (5) Å and a = 6.0375 (6) Å, b = 4.2706 (3) Å, c = 12.844 (1) Å, respectively; b) both alloys show two thermal transitions: 762 and 636K when heating and; 700 and 578K after cooling for Cu 2 GeTe 4 ; 702 and 636K when heating and; 650 and 590K after cooling for Cu 2 SnTe 4 ; c) both alloys present important stoichiometric deviations in their cations: Cu (~ 35%), Ge (7.2%) and Sn (26.4%) and lower than the experimental error for the anion Te; and d) the optical energy gaps measured were 0.63 and 0.53 eV for Cu 2 SnTe 4 and Cu 2 GeTe 4, respectively

The Mexican Patch-nosed Snake, Salvadora mexicana (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854; Squamata: Colubridae): a new state record for Zacatecas, Mexico, and a new prey species

Mexico, Zacatecas, Municipality of Valparaiso, ca. 2 km (airline) west of San Juan Capistrano, (22.637258° N; 104.118608° W [WGS84]; 1249 m elevation), 18 July 2017. Collected by Jorge A. Bañuelos-Alamillo. The snake was deposited in the Vertebrate Collection at Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes (CZUAA-REP-690); a photo voucher is also available at the San Diego Natural History Museum (SDSNH_HerpPC_05366). Adult female (SVL= 900 mm, TL= 380 mm), and had 17 midbody dorsal scales, 188 ventral scales, 106 subcaudals, nine supralabials, 11 infralabials, two loreal scales, one preocular, and three postoculars on both sides (Fig. 1-A). The snake was road-killed near a river within dry forest vegetation and had recently consumed an adult male Aspidoscelis gularis scalaris ingested headfirst.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

Optimizing dialysis dose in the context of frailty: an exploratory study

Introduction Frailty is a multicausal syndrome characterized by a decrease in strength, resistance and physiological function, which makes the individual vulnerable and dependent, and increases his/her mortality. This syndrome is more prevalent among older individuals, and chronic kidney disease patients, particularly those on dialysis. Dialysis dose is currently standardized for hemodialysis (HD) patients regardless of their age and functional status. However, it has been postulated that the dialysis dose required in older patients, especially frail ones, should be lower, since it could increase their degree of frailty. Then, the purpose of this study was to evaluate if there would be a correlation between the dose of Kt/V and the degree of frailty in a population of adult patients on HD. Materials and methods A cross-sectional study with 82 patients on HD in Barranquilla (Colombia) and Lobos (Argentina) was conducted. Socio-demographic and laboratory data, as well as dialysis doses (Kt/V) were recorded and scales of fragility, physical activity, gait and grip strength were applied. Then these data were correlated by a Spearman’s correlation and a logistic regression. Results CFS, social isolation, physical activity, gait speed, and prehensile strength tests were outside the reference ranges in the studied group. No significant correlation was found between dialysis dose and all the above mentioned functional tests. However, a significant and inverse correlation between physical activity and CFS was documented (score − 1.41 (CI − 2.1 to − 0.7). Conclusion No significant correlation was documented between Kt/V value and different parameters of the frailty status, but this status correlated significantly and inversely with physical activity in this group. Frailty status in hemodialysis patients was significantly higher in older individuals, although young individuals were not exempt from it