Effect of diet on live weight and egg weight of backyard hens during the rainy season

The objective was to determine the effect of diet on live weight (LW) and egg weight (EW) of backyard hens (BH) during the rainy season in the Bajío region of the state of Michoacán, Mexico. Seventeen municipalities were sampled, where 101 BH (six hens/municipality) were captured and weighed and 101 eggs (six eggs/municipality) were harvested and weighed. The crops of the captured hens were removed Post-sacrifice, the organic content/crop (OCC) was classified and weighed by components, to later perform chemical compositional analysis. Data were analysed using generalised linear models and the differences between municipalities were obtained by the method of least squares means. The weight of the OCC (36.4 ± 22.4 g) was affected by the municipality (P<0.001), but not by the LW of the BH (P>0.05). Commercial feed (8.1 ± 6.0 g), grains: maize and sorghum (13.9 ± 13.5 g) kitchen waste (1.5 ± 2.9 g), herbaceous (0.6 ± 0.9 g) and insects (0.3 ± 0.7 g) were found in the crop. According to the commercial feed (COF) component, two feeding systems (FS) were identified: traditional FS, without COF and nontraditional FS, with COF. The diets of both FS were similar (P>0.05) in nutritional composition and do not meet the nutritional requirements of the hens. The LW (1.567 ± 0.316 kg) and EW (51.3 ± 1.0 g) of the BH cannot be completely attributed to the diet consumed during the rainy season

New dental simulator for microsurgical training preliminary overview

Objective: To present a new simulator designed at the Minimally Invasive Surgery Centre (Cáceres) which offers an integral, effective and viable training system that can be used for learning microsurgical techniques. Study design: A square methacrylate block was used. Animal jaws were fixed to the sides by means of butterfly screws. This block also has a drainage tube to facilitate the escape of fluids. Results: Excellent results were obtained using this simulator in microsurgical suturing training in dental, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Conclusions: We believe that this simulator is an essential component in microsurgical training. It is an ethically and morally valid training method with which various suturing techniques can be practised before using live animals and before applying these to daily clinical practice

The GALANTE Photometric System

This paper describes the characterization of the GALANTE photometric system, a seven intermediate- and narrow-band filter system with a wavelength coverage from 3000 $\r{A}$ to 9000 $\r{A}$ . We describe the photometric system presenting the full sensitivity curve as a product of the filter sensitivity, CCD, telescope mirror, and atmospheric transmission curves, as well as some first- and second-order moments of this sensitivity function. The GALANTE photometric system is composed of four filters from the J-PLUS photometric system, a twelve broad-to-narrow filter system, and three exclusive filters, specifically designed to measure the physical parameters of stars such as effective temperature $T_{\rm eff}$, $\log(g)$, metallicity, colour excess $E(4405-5495)$, and extinction type $R_{5495}$. Two libraries, the Next Generation Spectral Library (NGSL) and the one presented in Ma\'iz Apell\'aniz & Weiler (2018), have been used to determine the transformation equations between the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ($\textit{SDSS}$) $\textit{ugriz}$ photometry and the GALANTE photometric system. We will use this transformation to calibrate the zero points of GALANTE images. To this end, a preliminary photometric calibration of GALANTE has been made based on two different $\textit{griz}$ libraries ($\textit{SDSS}$ DR12 and ATLAS All-Sky Stellar Reference Catalog, hereinafter $\textit{RefCat2}$). A comparison between both zero points is performed leading us to the choice of $\textit{RefCat2}$ as the base catalogue for this calibration, and applied to a field in the Cyg OB2 association.Comment: Accepted in MNRA

Involvement of the Transcriptional Coactivator ThMBF1 in the Biocontrol Activity of Trichoderma harzianum

[EN] Trichoderma harzianum is a filamentous fungus well adapted to different ecological niches. Owing to its ability to antagonize a wide range of plant pathogens, it is used as a biological control agent in agriculture. Selected strains of T. harzianum are also able to increase the tolerance of plants to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, little is known about the regulatory elements of the T. harzianum transcriptional machinery and their role in the biocontrol by this species. We had previously reported the involvement of the transcription factor THCTF1 in the T. harzianum production of the secondary metabolite 6-pentyl-pyrone, an important volatile compound related to interspecies cross-talk. Here, we performed a subtractive hybridization to explore the genes regulated by THCTF1, allowing us to identify a multiprotein bridging factor 1 (mbf1) homolog. The gene from T. harzianum T34 was isolated and characterized, and the generated Thmbf1 overexpressing transformants were used to investigate the role of this gene in the biocontrol abilities of the fungus against two plant pathogens. The transformants showed a reduced antifungal activity against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici race 2 (FO) and Botrytis cinerea (BC) in confrontation assays on discontinuous medium, indicating that the Thmbf1 gene could affect T. harzianum production of volatile organic compounds (VOC) with antifungal activity. Moreover, cellophane and dialysis membrane assays indicated that Thmbf1 overexpression affected the production of low molecular weight secreted compounds with antifungal activity against FO. Intriguingly, no correlation in the expression profiles, either in rich or minimal medium, was observed between Thmbf1 and the master regulator gene cross-pathway control (cpc1). Greenhouse assays allowed us to evaluate the biocontrol potential of T. harzianum strains against BC and FO on susceptible tomato plants. The wild type strain T34 significantly reduced the necrotic leaf lesions caused by BC while plants treated with the Thmbf1-overexpressing transformants exhibited an increased susceptibility to this pathogen. The percentages of Fusarium wilt disease incidence and values of aboveground dry weight showed that T34 did not have biocontrol activity against FO, at least in the 'Moneymaker' tomato variety, and that Thmbf1 overexpression increased the incidence of this disease. Our results show that the Thmbf1 overexpression in T34 negatively affects its biocontrol mechanismsSIThis research project was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Project no. AGL2015-70671-C2) and the Junta de Castilla y León (Project no. SA009U16

Nota corológica sobre la flora de Extremadura (España)

Floristic records for the Flora of Extremadura (Spain)Palabras clave. Badajoz, Cáceres, Corología, Extremadura, Flora. Key words. Badajoz, Cáceres, Corology, Extremadura, Flora

Análisis experimental de las barras de madera laminada con sección tubular utilizadas en la construcción de una malla espacial

La construcción de una malla espacial empleando módulos apilables ejecutados con barras de madera laminada de sección tubular ha constituido el germen para abordar una campaña experimental del comportamiento de este tipo de piezas. El artículo presenta los resultados del trabajo experimental realizado, tanto con anterioridad a la construcción de la estructura, como los ensayos posteriores sobre barras reales reservadas durante la ejecución de la obra. Se han realizado ensayos tanto de tracción como de compresión empleando barras con diferentes esbelteces. Los resultados ponen de manifiesto el interés de las soluciones propuestas y la viabilidad de su empleo en esta tipología estructural. AbstractThe construction of a spatial grid using stackable modules of glued-laminated timber bars with box section has provided the germ for an experimental approach of the behaviour of these types of bars. The paper presents the results of experimental campaign, both prior to the construction of the structure, such as real bars subsequent trials. Both tension tests and compression tests using bars with different slenderness have been conducted. The results show the interest of the proposed solutions and the feasibility of its use in this type of structure

Nitrogen Metabolism and Growth Enhancement in Tomato Plants Challenged with Trichoderma harzianum Expressing the Aspergillus nidulans Acetamidase amdS Gene

[EN] Trichoderma is a fungal genus that includes species that are currently being used as biological control agents and/or as biofertilizers. In addition to the direct application of Trichoderma spp. as biocontrol agents in plant protection, recent studies have focused on the beneficial responses exerted on plants, stimulating the growth, activating the defenses, and/or improving nutrient uptake. The amdS gene, encoding an acetamidase of Aspergillus, has been used as a selectable marker for the transformation of filamentous fungi, including Trichoderma spp., but the physiological effects of the introduction of this gene into the genome of these microorganisms still remains unexplored. No evidence of amdS orthologous genes has been detected within the Trichoderma spp. genomes and the amdS heterologous expression in Trichoderma harzianum T34 did not affect the growth of this fungus in media lacking acetamide. However, it did confer the ability for the fungus to use this amide as a nitrogen source. Although a similar antagonistic behavior was observed for T34 and amdS transformants in dual cultures against Rhizoctonia solani, Botrytis cinerea, and Fusarium oxysporum, a significantly higher antifungal activity was detected in amdS transformants against F. oxysporum, compared to that of T34, in membrane assays on media lacking acetamide. In Trichoderma-tomato interaction assays, amdS transformants were able to promote plant growth to a greater extent than the wild-type T34, although compared with this strain the transformants showed similar capability to colonize tomato roots. Gene expression patterns from aerial parts of 3-week-old tomato plants treated with T34 and the amdS transformants have also been investigated using GeneChip Tomato Genome Arrays. The downregulation of defense genes and the upregulation of carbon and nitrogen metabolism genes observed in the microarrays were accompanied by (i) enhanced growth, (ii) increased carbon and nitrogen levels, and (iii) a higher sensitivity to B. cinerea infections in plants treated with amdS transformants as detected in greenhouse assays. These observations suggest that the increased plant development promoted by the amdS transformants was at expense of defensesSIResearch project funding was from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Project no. AGL2015-70671-C2) and the Junta de Castilla y León (Projects no. SA230U13 and LE228U14). The grant awarded to Sara Domínguez by Junta de Castilla y León (Spain) and Wagner Bettiol was supported by a fellowship from the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo—FAPESP (Project no. 2014/03426-1