Characterisation of different Chilean Capsicum spp. varieties and the antifungal activity of their aqueous extracts

The increase in fungal resistance to synthetic antifungals used in agrifood production has brought the need to develop new technologies based on an eco-friendly approach. The main aim of this work was to evaluate the antifungal potential of Chilean Capsicum spp. extracts against plant pathogens and mycotoxigenic fungi found in agrifood production. Five different varieties of Chilean Capsicum spp. were obtained from both farmers and local markets in the city of Temuco, Chile. A specialist Botanist at the Universidad de La Frontera (Chile) confirmed the identification of pepper species and varieties. Fresh samples were grounded with a blender and freeze-dried for 7 days in the dark. After that, dry powder samples were stored at -20 °C in the dark until use. Pepper pod aqueous extracts were obtained by blending the freeze-dried puree from Capsicum spp. with 300 mL distilled water. Samples were incubated at 90°C for 20 minutes in a water bath with intermittent cycles of manual stirring every 2 minutes. The determination of capsaicinoid content was performed on an HPLC-FD system and the total polyphenols content was performed on an HPLC-DAD system. The antioxidant activity was carried out in a microplate reader using the DPPH and CUPRAC method. Reference strains of Alternaria, Aspergillus, Fusarium, Penicillium and Rhizopus were subjected to susceptibility tests (disc and culture media diffusion methods and MIC assay) against different concentrations of each pepper pod extract. Pure capsaicin, dihydrocapsaicin, nordihydrocapsaicin and amphotericin B were used as standard in the susceptibility tests. Significant differences in the concentration of capsaicinoids were found among the different varieties of the same Capsicum species. The pepper pod extracts affected the macro- and micro-morphological features of the analysed filamentous fungal strains. Fungal strains belonging to the genera Alternaria, Aspergillus, Fusarium, Penicillium and Rhizopus produced mycelium with thinning, fragile and easily-break structure. In addition, their conidiophores became fragile presenting easily-break structures. Regarding other fungal genera (data not shown), the main alteration was the absence of conidiophore formation in some strains. The morphological changes observed in the filamentous fungi strains suggest the fungistatic potential of pepper pod extracts. Results suggest pepper pod extracts could not kill non/target fungal biodiversity but could control the growth and reproduction of some fungal plant pathogens. Inhibition of mycotoxin production is now under evaluation. Additional work is being developed in the field to validate the in vitro results.ANID (Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo, Chile) through the ANID/FONDECYT/1221024 project. This work was partially funded by the Universidad de La Frontera (Chile). Authors thank the InES19-FRO19001 project, funded by the Ministerio de Educación (Chile) and executed by the Universidad de La Frontera. The authors thank Professor Ruben Carrillo (UFRO) for his support in confirming the pepper species and varieties identification.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Estudio exploratorio de la variabilidad radial y apical del tamaño y frecuencia de los canales resiníferos en Pino radiata

En este trabajo se cuantifica la variabilidad radial y apical de los canales resiníferos de pino radiata (Pinus radiata) de 14 años.Se determinó la frecuencia y el tamaño de los canales resiníferos en muestras microtomadas usando un software comercial. Las muestras fueron extraídas de árboles en pie presentando tres niveles diferentes de resinación externa, es decir, moderada/leve, e intensa. Se evaluó la variabilidad de los canales resiníferos según la posición radial a tres diferentes alturas: base, DAP, y al comienzo de la copa del árbol.Los resultados muestran que la variación radial y apical del tamaño y la frecuencia de canales resiníferos aparece débilmente correlacionada con el nivel de intensidad de resinación observada en árboles en pie de pino radiata. AbstractRadial and apical variation in resin canals of radiata pine were studied. The frequency and size of resin canals were examined, using microscopic techniques from a commercial software. Wood samples from standing trees were taken, showing three different levels of external resin-bleeding intensity: moderate, light and intense. The variability of the resin canals were examined according to the radial position at three different heights ; bottom, breast height diameter and at the beginning of the tree top. The results show that the apical and radial variation of the size and frequency of resin canals appeared weakly correlated with the intensity level of the tree resin-bleeding of the standing radiata pine trees

Larval development of the pea crab Afropinnotheres monodi Manning, 1993 (Decapoda, Pinnotheridae) using plankton-collected and laboratory-reared specimens: effects of temperature

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of temperature on the survival and duration of larval development in the African pea crab Afropinnotheres monodi, as well as to describe its larval stages. We studied larvae reared in the laboratory and also specimens collected from plankton from the Gulf of Cádiz at two different temperatures. According to the results of this study, larval development of A. monodi involves four zoea stages and one megalopa and lasts around 25 days at 25°C, and longer than 40 days at 19°C. Such a temperature-related duration of this dispersive phase may be causing a higher recruitment to parental populations during the summer, but a higher dispersal to new locations during the rest of the year, a seasonal pattern of dispersion which could favour the successful expansion of this non-native species into European waters. The identification of both larval phases from plankton samples and adult specimens was carried out using morphological characters and molecular techniques. Both the 16S mtDNA sequences of this species, now available in GenBank, and the larval descriptions provided by this study could help to establish an early alert for the detection of this African species in its northward expansion

Estudio celular y molecular de los cambios gonadales y espermáticos en conejos hipercolesterolémicos. Análisis del efecto del aceite de oliva

La ingesta elevada de grasas de origen animal (“saturadas”) conlleva a un incremento de colesterol en sangre (hipercolesterolemia, HC), y es un factor de riesgo para el desarrollo de enfermedades cardiovasculares

Call me by my name: unravelling the taxonomy of the gulper shark genus Centrophorus in the Mediterranean Sea through an integrated taxonomic approach

The current shift of fishery efforts towards the deep sea is raising concern about the vulnerability of deep-water sharks, which are often poorly studied and characterized by problematic taxonomy. For instance, in the Mediterranean Sea the taxonomy of genus Centrophorus has not been clearly unravelled yet. Since proper identification of the species is fundamental for their correct assessment and management, this study aims at clarifying the taxonomy of this genus in the Mediterranean Basin through an integrated taxonomic approach. We analysed a total of 281 gulper sharks (Centrophorus spp.) collected from various Mediterranean, Atlantic and Indian Ocean waters. Molecular data obtained from cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), 16S ribosomal RNA (16S), NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (ND2) and a portion of a nuclear 28S ribosomal DNA gene region (28S) have highlighted the presence of a unique mitochondrial clade in the Mediterranean Sea. The morphometric results confirmed these findings, supporting the presence of a unique and distinct morphological group comprising all Mediterranean individuals. The data strongly indicate the occurrence of a single Centrophorus species in the Mediterranean, ascribable to C. cf. uyato, and suggest the need for a revision of the systematics of the genus in the area.En prens

Stellar Astrophysics and Exoplanet Science with the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE)

The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) is a planned 11.25-m aperture facility with a 1.5 square degree field of view that will be fully dedicated to multi-object spectroscopy. A rebirth of the 3.6m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Maunakea, MSE will use 4332 fibers operating at three different resolving powers (R ~ 2500, 6000, 40000) across a wavelength range of 0.36-1.8mum, with dynamical fiber positioning that allows fibers to match the exposure times of individual objects. MSE will enable spectroscopic surveys with unprecedented scale and sensitivity by collecting millions of spectra per year down to limiting magnitudes of g ~ 20-24 mag, with a nominal velocity precision of ~100 m/s in high-resolution mode. This white paper describes science cases for stellar astrophysics and exoplanet science using MSE, including the discovery and atmospheric characterization of exoplanets and substellar objects, stellar physics with star clusters, asteroseismology of solar-like oscillators and opacity-driven pulsators, studies of stellar rotation, activity, and multiplicity, as well as the chemical characterization of AGB and extremely metal-poor stars.Comment: 31 pages, 11 figures; To appear as a chapter for the Detailed Science Case of the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explore

Forest hydrology in Chile: Past, present, and future

This paper reviews the current knowledge of hydrological processes in Chilean temperate forests which extend along western South America from latitude 29° S to 56 ° S. This geographic region includes a diverse range of natural and planted forests and a broad sweep of vegetation, edaphic, topographic, geologic, and climatic settings which create a unique natural laboratory. Many local communities, endangered freshwater ecosystems, and downstream economic activities in Chile rely on water flows from forested catchments. This review aims to (i) provide a comprehensive overview of Chilean forest hydrology, to (ii) review prior research in forest hydrology in Chile, and to (iii) identify knowledge gaps and provide a vision for future research on forest hydrology in Chile. We reviewed the relation between native forests, commercial plantations, and other land uses on water yield and water quality from the plot to the catchment scale. Much of the global understanding of forests and their relationship with the water cycle is in line with the findings of the studies reviewed here. Streamflow from forested catchments increases after timber harvesting, native forests appear to use less water than plantations, and streams draining native forest yield less sediment than streams draining plantations or grassland/shrublands. We identified 20 key knowledge gaps such as forest groundwater systems, soil–plant-atmosphere interactions, native forest hydrology, and the effect of forest management and restoration on hydrology. Also, we found a paucity of research in the northern geographic areas and forest types (35-36 ° S); most forest hydrology studies in Chile (56 %) have been conducted in the southern area (Los Rios Region around 39-40 ° S). There is limited knowledge of the geology and soils in many forested areas and how surface and groundwater are affected by changes in land cover. There is an opportunity to advance our understanding using process-based investigations linking field studies and modeling. Through the establishment of a forest hydrology science “society” to coordinate efforts, regional and national-scale land use planning might be supported. Our review ends with a vision to advance a cross-scale collaborative effort to use new nation-wide catchment-scale networks Long-term Ecosystem Research (LTER) sites, to promote common and complementary techniques in these studies, and to conduct transdisciplinary research to advance sound and integrated planning of forest lands in Chile