Enhancing resistance against African weevils through development of transgenic sweetpotato cultivars (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) expressing cry7Aa1, cry3Ca1 and ET33-34 genes.

Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) is one of the most important food crops in tropical and subtropical countries. In Sub-Saharan Africa, sweetpotato is mainly produced for consumption and as a source of income by resource-poor farmers. However, their production is limited by severe damage caused by pests and diseases. The African weevils Cylas puncticollis and C. brunneus are the main biological constraints that may cause losses between 50 and 100%. Biotechnological approaches to control weevils include the introduction of genes encoding Cry proteins found to be active against these pests. To that end, several protocols for sweetpotato regeneration and transformation by organogenesis or somatic embryogenesis have been developed but their efficiency remains largely genotype-dependent and time-consuming. In this study, 31 African sweetpotato cultivars from CIP genebank were screened for regeneration and transformation efficiencies by organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis. Additionally, “Jewel” and “Jonathan” cultivars were used as organogenic and embryogenic controls, respectively. Regeneration by organogenesis was conducted using a two-step protocol including 2,4-D then thidiazuron, zeatin or kinetin while regeneration by embryogenesis was performed using a three-step protocol, each one using a different hormone (2,4,5-T, ABA and AG3). Higher than 40% regeneration efficiencies were obtained for 8 cultivars (Jewel, Imby, Kawogo, Luapula, Mafutha, CIP440163, Zambezi and Ukerewe) with an organogenesis protocol and 8 cultivars (Jonathan, Imby, K51/3251, Bwanjule, CIP440163, SPK004, New Kawogo and KSP 11) with an embryogenesis protocol. Genetic transformation of sweetpotato with Jewel by organogenesis and Imby, CIP440163 and Jonathan by somatic embryogenesis has been achieved using chimerical genes coding for three of the most active proteins (Cry7Aa1, ET33-34, and Cry3Ca1) against African weevils. Transgenic events have been confirmed by kanamycin resistant calli test, PCR and Southern blot. Transcriptional activity and Cry protein accumulation are being tested in leaves and storage roots by Real time PCR and DAS-ELISA respectively

An adaptive recovery method in compressed sensing of extracellular neural recording

ABSTRACT: A novel adaptive recovery method in the emerging compressed sensing theory is described and applied to extracellular neural recordings in order to reduce data rate in wireless neural recording systems. To strike a balance between high compression ratio and high spike reconstruction quality, a novel method that employs a group-sparsity recovery algorithm, prior information about the input neural signal, learning prior supports of spikes, and a matched wavelet technique is introduced. Our simulation results, using four different sets of real extracellular recordings from four distinct neural sources, show that our proposed method is effective, viable, and outperforms the state-of-the-art compressed sensing-based methods, in particular, when the number of the measurement is two times of the sparsity

Transversal application on surface quality control in Manufacturing Engineering

Se ha fabricado y recubierto una serie de moldes físicos: chapas rectangulares de Al-Mg, con distintos materiales poliméricos que han permitido abarcar distintos puntos de vista de la ingeniería de superficies que se contemplan en las asignaturas implicadas en este proyecto. Sobre estos modelos se ha podido medir, verificar, proponer estudios, informes, etc., y se ha desarrollado actividades académicamente dirigidas y trabajos por competencias.A series of physical mouldings have been manufactured and coated: rectangular plates of Al-Mg, with different polymeric materials that have allowed including different points of view in the the engineering of surfaces that are contemplated in the subjects involved in this project. On these models it has been possible to measure, to verify, to propose studies, reports, etc., and has developed activities academically directed and works by competences

Sol-gel deposition of hydroxyapatite coatings on porous titanium for biomedical applications

The stress shielding and the poor osseointegration in titanium implants are still problems to be resolved. In this context, this work proposes a balanced solution. Titanium samples were fabricated, with a porosity of 100-200 µm of pore size employing space-holder technique (50 vol. % NH4HCO3, 800 MPa at 1250 ºC during 2h under high vacuum conditions), obtaining a good equilibrium between stiffness and mechanical resistance. The porous titanium substrates were coated with hydroxyapatite, obtained by sol-gel technique: immersion, dried at 80ºC and heat treatment at 450ºC during 5h under vacuum conditions. Phases, surface morphology and interfacial microstructure of the transverse section were analyzed by Micro-Computed Tomography, SEM and confocal laser, as well as the infiltration capability of the coating into the metallic substrate pores. The FTIR and XRD showed the crystallinity of the phases and the chemical composition homogeneity of the coating. The size and interconnected pores obtained allow the infiltration of hydroxyapatite (HA), possible bone ingrowth and osseointegration. The scratch resistance of the coating corroborated a good adherence to the porous metallic substrate. The coated titanium samples have a biomechanical and biofunctional equilibrium, as well as a potential use in biomedical applications (partial substitution of bone tissue).Junta de Andalucía-FEDER (Spain) Project Ref. P12-TEP-1401Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness Grant No. MAT2015-71284-

Iberoamerican network of medicine post-consumption programs: past, present and future

La contaminación por residuos farmacéuticos es una preocupación a nivel mundial. Diversos estudios han demostrado el efecto deletéreo que estos productos ocasionan sobre los ecosistemas en general, incluyendo los seres humanos. Entre las estrategias propuestas para mitigar esta problemática figuran los programas de gestión posconsumo de medicamentos, basados, en su mayoría, en conceptos de Responsabilidad Social Empresaria, Economía Circular y Logística Inversa. De tales programas se destacan cuatro, que han sido instalados con éxito, en Colombia (Punto Azul), España (SIGRE), México (SINGREM) y Portugal (VALORMED). En forma conjunta integran la Red Iberoamericana de Programas Posconsumo de Medicamentos. En este trabajo se brinda un panorama de los orígenes de estos programas, su situación actual y las proyecciones futuras.A contaminação por resíduos farmacêuticos é uma preocupação mundial. Vários estudos têm mostrado o efeito deletério que esses produtos causam nos ecossistemas em geral, inclusive no ser humano. Entre as estratégias propostas para mitigar esse problema estão os programas de gestão de medicamentos pós-consumo, em sua maioria baseados nos conceitos de Responsabilidade Social Corporativa, Economia Circular e Logística Reversa. Destacam-se quatro desses programas, implantados com sucesso na Colômbia (Punto Azul), Espanha (SIGRE), México (SINGREM) e Portugal (VALORMED). Juntos, eles compõem a Rede Ibero-Americana de Programas Pós-Consumo de Medicamentos. Este artigo fornece uma visão geral sobre as origens desses programas, sua situação atual e projeções futuras.Contamination by pharmaceuticals is a worldwide concern. Several studies have shown the deleterious effect that these products cause to ecosystems, including human beings. Among the strategies proposed to mitigate this problem are postconsumer drug management programs, mostly based on the concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility, Circular Economy, and Reverse Logistics. Four of these programs stand out, which have been successfully installed in Colombia (Punto Azul), Spain (SIGRE), Mexico (SINGREM) and Portugal (VALORMED). Together they conform the Ibero-American Network of Post-Consumer Drug Programs. This paper provides an overview of the origins of these programs, their current situation, and future projections.Fil: Aedo, José A.. Sistema Nacional de Gestión de Residuos de Envases y Medicamentos; MéxicoFil: Figueiredo, Luis. Sociedade Gestora de Resíduos de Embalagens e Medicamentos; PortugalFil: González Vidal, Noelia Luján. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Cátedra de Control de Calidad de Medicamentos; Argentina. Sociedad Iberoamericana de Salud Ambiental; ArgentinaFil: Mampasso, Juan C.. Medicamento y Medio Ambiente; EspañaFil: Pinzon Ramirez, J.c.. Corporación Punto Azul; ColombiaFil: Trujillo Sanchez, J.e.. Corporación Punto Azul; Colombi

Desarrollo de un método de determinación multielemental para muestras medioambientales por espectrometría de absorción atómica

La contaminación ambiental es una gran preocupación para el ser humano, siendo los metales de transición y sus derivados los contaminantes más destacables del planeta, por ello es importante su control. La concentración de alguno de ellos puede ser muy baja, o incluso provenir de matrices complejas que pueden interferir en su determinación. La extracción en fase sólida magnética (MSPE) ofrece ventajas como la simplicidad, un alto factor de enriquecimiento y un consumo bajo de reactivos. En este trabajo se ha empleado un nuevo material absorbente basado en el acoplamiento de nanopartículas magnéticas (MNPs) y óxido de grafeno (GO) funcionalizado con metiltiosalicilato (MTS) que le proporciona selectividad para interaccionar con los metales de transición en disolución, M@GO-MTS, En base a este material se ha desarrollado un método de extracción en fase solida magnética y espectrometría de absorción atómica con horno de grafito de alta resolución y fuente continua (CS-HR-GFAAS). Este método se ha utilizado para la determinación simultanea de Ti, V, Ni en aguas medioambientales. Con el procedimiento se lograron límites de detección de 0.90, 0.60 y 0.75 μg/L para cada uno de los metales respectivamente, límites de cuantificación de 3.00, 2.01 y 2.49 μg/L respectivamente y factor de enriquecimiento de 250 con precisiones de 3,45% para el Ti, 1,46 % para el V y 4,20 % para el Ni. Agradecimientos: Los autores agradecen al "Plan Propio, Universidad de Málaga" por apoyar este estudio y también a los fondos FEDER y a la Junta de Andalucía (Proyecto UMA18-FEDERJA-060) por el apoyo financiero de este trabajo.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Small-scale solar magnetic fields

As we resolve ever smaller structures in the solar atmosphere, it has become clear that magnetism is an important component of those small structures. Small-scale magnetism holds the key to many poorly understood facets of solar magnetism on all scales, such as the existence of a local dynamo, chromospheric heating, and flux emergence, to name a few. Here, we review our knowledge of small-scale photospheric fields, with particular emphasis on quiet-sun field, and discuss the implications of several results obtained recently using new instruments, as well as future prospects in this field of research.Comment: 43 pages, 18 figure

Multiwavelength studies of MHD waves in the solar chromosphere: An overview of recent results

The chromosphere is a thin layer of the solar atmosphere that bridges the relatively cool photosphere and the intensely heated transition region and corona. Compressible and incompressible waves propagating through the chromosphere can supply significant amounts of energy to the interface region and corona. In recent years an abundance of high-resolution observations from state-of-the-art facilities have provided new and exciting ways of disentangling the characteristics of oscillatory phenomena propagating through the dynamic chromosphere. Coupled with rapid advancements in magnetohydrodynamic wave theory, we are now in an ideal position to thoroughly investigate the role waves play in supplying energy to sustain chromospheric and coronal heating. Here, we review the recent progress made in characterising, categorising and interpreting oscillations manifesting in the solar chromosphere, with an impetus placed on their intrinsic energetics.Comment: 48 pages, 25 figures, accepted into Space Science Review