Distance to flood meadows as a predictor of use of Nothofagus pumilio forest by livestock and resulting impact, in Patagonia, Argentina

Seedling browsing by livestock has been indicated as major threat for forest sustainability use. Nothofagus pumilio forests are part of the livestock raising system in Patagonia, but because of the sparse understory cover, livestock graze mainly on flood meadows within the forest matrix. The complexity of the environment under study (forests and flood meadows) means that an adaptive predictor is needed to evaluate the intensity of resource use by livestock in order to assess its effect on the forest. Distance to flood meadows was evaluated as a predictor of the use intensity of the forest by livestock and its effect on the understory. The study was conducted at three sites in Chubut Province, Patagonia-Argentina. We established transects in the forest 320 m long, starting at the edge flood meadow-forest. In these transects, the livestock presence indicators (soil compaction, density of feces and trails) and composition of the understory were evaluated. Generalized Linear Model for repeated measures for longitudinal data were used. The indicators showed that distance is efficient for estimating forest use intensity by livestock. The understory varied with distance, the cover of exotic herbaceous was higher near the flood meadow. Far from the flood meadow, the cover was entirely composited of native species. The results support the use of distance to flood meadows as a tool for decision making in livestock and forest management in N. pumilio forests, and for further research on livestock effect on the forest.Fil: Quinteros, Claudia Pamela. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Lopez Bernal, Pablo Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Gobbi, Miriam E.. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universitario Bariloche; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Bava, Jose Omar. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Crecimiento de renuevos y expansión de copas en claros del dosel de bosques de Nothofagus pumilio (lenga) en Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina

In the province of Chubut in Patagonia, Argentina, Nothofagus pumilio forests (locally known as lenga), are managed through selective cuts, which imply the opening of canopy gaps. This management scheme is carried out without taking into consideration the changes of sapling requirements through either a cutting cycle or the precipitation gradient in which these forests thrive. To analyze these changes, we inferred the facilitation-competition balance between the canopy and regeneration, studying the effects of precipitation levels, gap size and gap age on saplings growth in height on 45 canopy gaps artificially created between 1960 and 1993. Results showed that during the first 20 years since gap opening, growth of regeneration is determined by light availability in mesic sites and by water availability in xeric sites. However, differences due to precipitation levels gradually decrease over time. Moreover, in the period between 20 and 35 years after gap opening, in both mesic and xeric sites, growth is limited by light availability. This indicates that in xeric sites, sapling growth requirements shift from a water-dependent situation to a light-dependent situation. The average closing rate of gaps due to lateral growth of bordering trees is high enough so that within the proposed gap size range, gap healing can occur before regeneration reaches the upper stratum. Consequently, in mesic sites gap opening can be done by a single operation that generates gaps with diameters of approximately twice the average height of the canopy (D/H). While in xeric environments, lenga seedling establishment and initial growth require the cover of small gaps, but advanced regeneration requires bigger gaps to reach the canopy. For this reason, gaps should be opened in two stages: the first gaps should be opened with a D/H between 0.8 and 1, and after a cutting cycle of 35 years, these openings should be enlarged to a D/H between 1.5 and 2. The close relationship maintained between the new cohort and the upper strata require special considerations regarding the evolution of the balance between positive and negative interactions during development. Our work highlights the need to adjust management practices to these spatial and temporal variations to achieve an optimal growth along the entire production cycle.En la provincia del Chubut, Patagonia Argentina, los bosques de Nothofagus pumilio (lenga) son manejados mediante cortas de selección, que implican la apertura de claros en el dosel. Este esquema de manejo es implementado sin tener en cuenta los requerimientos de los renuevos a lo largo de todo el ciclo de cortas ni el gradiente de precipitaciones presente en su distribución. Para analizar estos aspectos estimamos el balance facilitación-competencia entre el dosel y la regeneración, considerando los efectos de los niveles de precipitación, el tamaño de los claros y la antigüedad de los mismos, en 45 claros creados artificialmente entre los años 1960 y 1993. Los resultados muestran que durante los primeros 20 años desde la apertura del claro, el crecimiento de la regeneración está determinado por la disponibilidad de luz en los sitios mésicos y por la disponibilidad de agua en los sitios xéricos. Sin embargo, la diferencias entre los distintos niveles de precipitación decrece gradualmente a lo largo del tiempo y entre los 20 a 35 años luego de la apertura de los claros, tanto en los sitios mésicos como xéricos el factor limitante es la luz. Esto implica que en los sitios xéricos el crecimiento de los renuevos pasa de ser dependiente del agua a dependiente de la luz. Por otro lado, la tasa de cierre de los claros debida al crecimiento lateral de la copa de los árboles límite es lo suficientemente grande como para que pueda ocurrir el cierre antes de que los renuevos alcancen el estrato superior. Por lo tanto, en los sitios mésicos la apertura de los claros puede realizarse en una única operación que genere claros con un diámetro de aproximadamente el doble de la altura dominante del bosque (D/H ≈ 2). Por el contrario, en los sitios xéricos, el establecimiento y crecimiento inicial de los renuevos requiere la apertura de claros pequeños (D/H entre 0,8 y 1) que luego deberán ser ampliados para maximizar el crecimiento avanzado (D/H entre 1,5 y 2). La estrecha relación entre la regeneración y el dosel del bosque requiere la consideración de los posibles cambios en el balance entre los apsectos positivos y negativos de la misma a lo largo de todo su desarrollo. Nuestro trabajo resalta la necesidad de ajustar las prácticas de manejo a estas variaciones espaciales y temporales para alcanzar un desarrollo óptimo a lo largo del todo el ciclo productivo.Fil: Lopez Bernal, Pablo Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; ArgentinaFil: Defossé, Guillermo Emilio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco". Facultad de Ingeniería - Sede Esquel. Departamento de Ingeniería Forestal; ArgentinaFil: Quinteros, Claudia Pamela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Gobierno de la Provincia de Chubut. Secretaría de Ciencia Tecnología e Innovación Productiva; ArgentinaFil: Bava, Jose Omar. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco". Facultad de Ingeniería - Sede Esquel. Departamento de Ingeniería Forestal; Argentin

Dieta de verano de bovinos pastoreando en bosques de lenga (Nothofagus pumilio) y mallines de Chubut, Argentina

Se determinó la composición de la dieta de verano de bovinos pastoreando en sistemas formados por bosques de Nothofagus pumilio (lenga) y mallines, del noroeste del Chubut. Se estimó la disponibilidad forrajera de los mallines y del sotobosque mediante cortes de biomasa aérea, y se determinó la composición dietaria mediante análisis microhistológico de heces. La dieta está integrada principalmente por especies de gramíneas y graminoideas, que disminuyeron su frecuencia al final del verano, mientras que los renovales de lenga y otras especies leñosas aumentaron su frecuencia. El ganado selecciona gramíneas en ambos períodos, y al final del verano también los renovales de lenga. La ganadería constituye una importante y creciente forma de subsistencia para los pobladores del noroeste del Chubut, este trabajo aporta elementos para avanzar en la búsqueda de herramientas que permitan la sustentabilidad de los bosques de lenga.Fil: Quinteros, Claudia Pamela. Centro de Investigación y Ext. Forestal Andino-Patagónica, Argentina;Fil: Feijoo, Sandra Mabel. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia, Argentina;Fil: Arias, Nadia Soledad. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia, Argentina;Fil: Lopez Bernal, Pablo Martin. Centro de Investigación y Ext. Forestal Andino-Patagónica, Argentina;Fil: Bava, Jose Omar. Centro de Investigación y Ext. Forestal Andino-Patagónica, Argentina

Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned Nothofagus pumilio Forests in Patagonia Argentina

The availability of soil-stored seed determines initial plant functional types in post-fire landscapes. We evaluated the post-fire regeneration of Nothofagus pumilio forests, in Patagonia, Argentina, analyzing the soil seed bank (SSB) and the above-ground vegetation (AV). At three sites: La Colisión, Río Turbio and Monte Zeballos, burned in 2008, 1980 and 1941, respectively, we sampled the SSB and AV in two transects from the edge of the remaining forest, up to 90 m within the burned area, and recorded the emergence (198 soil samples) and presence of vascular species. To determine the effect of the distance to the remnant forest on the germinable seed bank, we performed simple linear regression analysis through the use of linear mixed-effect models, and we analyzed the similarity between the composition of SSB and AV with PERMANOVA. The emergence of plant growth forms had different patterns in relation to the distance from the forest in the three sites, which might be associated with the time of fire occurrence, and specific characteristics of each site. The emergence of N. pumilio was registered at more than one distance at the recent burning site. Herbs constituted the main source of cover with 69% of the composition, and native/endemic species represented 71%. This study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between the seed bank and standing vegetation and a better understanding of the resilience of post-fire N. pumilio forests. Our findings suggest that from 15–20 m from the edge, the SSB would be insufficient to ensure the spontaneous recovery of the forest, making active restoration necessary in order to tend to a recovery of the structure and functionality of the original community.EEA Santa CruzFil: Urretavizcaya, María F. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónica (CIEFAP); Argentina.Fil: Urretavizcaya María F. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET). Esquel, Chubut; Argentina.Fil: Albarracín, Viviana. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud. Departamento de Biología y Ambiente; Argentina.Fil: Orellana Ibáñez, Ivonne A. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud; Argentina.Fil: Rago, M. Melisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónica (CIEFAP); Argentina.Fil: Lopez Bernal, Pablo. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco. Facultad de Ingeniería. Departamento de Ingeniería Forestal; Argentina.Fil: Monelos, Lucas H. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina

Monitoreo del uso forestal y ganadero del bosque de lenga

Fil: Bava, Jose Omar. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Quinteros, Claudia Pamela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Lopez Bernal, Pablo Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico; Argentin

Factors associated with false negative and false positive results of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and the impact on patient health

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the main tool for early detection, risk stratification and monitoring of prostate cancer (PCa). However, there are controversies about the use of PSA as a population screening test because of the high potential for overdiagnosis and overtreatment associated. The net benefit of screening is unclear and according to the available recommendations, it should be offered to well-informed men with an adequate health status and a life-expectancy of at least 10 years or to men at elevated risk of having PCa. In addition, the factors that influence test results are unclear, as is impact of false positive or negative results on patient health. Our objective is to assess the clinical and analytical factors associated with the presence of false positive and false negative results and the diagnostic/therapeutic process followed by these patients. Methods and analysis: A prospective observational cohort study will be carried out. We will include a cohort of patients with a positive PSA result (1.081 patients) and a sample of patients with negative results (572 patients); both will be followed for 2 years by reviewing medical records to assess the variables associated with these results, as well as characteristics of patient management after a positive PSA value. We will include those patients with a PSA determination from 2 hospitals in the Valencian Community. Patients who have been previously diagnosed with prostate cancer or who are being followed for previous high PSA values will be excluded. Discussion: The study will estimate the frequency of false positive and false negative PSA results in routine clinical practice, and allow us to quantify the potential harm cause

Permanent control of HIV-1 pathogenesis in exceptional elite controllers: a model of spontaneous cure

Elite controllers (EC) represent a small subset of HIV-1-infected people that spontaneously control viral replication. However, natural virological suppression and absence of immune dysfunction are not always long-term sustained. We define exceptional EC (EEC) as HIV-1 subjects who maintain the EC characteristics without disease progression for more than 25 years. We analyzed three EEC, diagnosed between 1988 and 1992, who never showed signs of clinical disease progression in absence of any antiretroviral treatment. A comprehensive clinical, virological, and immunological study was performed. The individuals simultaneously exhibited ≥3 described host protective alleles, low levels of total HIV-1 DNA (0.50). Inflammation levels of EEC were similar to HIV-1 negative donors. Remarkably, they showed an exceptional lack of viral evolution and 8-fold lower genetic diversity (<0.01 s/n) in env gene than other EC. We postulate that these EEC represent cases of spontaneous functional HIV-1 cure. A non-functional and non-genetically evolving viral reservoir along with an HIV-1-specific immune response seems to be key for the spontaneous functional cure.Work in Centro Nacional de Microbiologia (ISCIII) was supported by grants SAF (2016–77894-R) from Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MINECO) (Spain) and Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria (FIS)-Instituto de Salud CarlosIII, grant FIS (PI 13/02269, ISCIII) and in part by the RIS-RETIC grants RD12/0017/0028 and RD16CIII/0002/0005 funded by the ISCIII-FEDER. MP has a contract of RIS-RETIC RD16CIII/0002/0005. This work was supported by grants from the MINECO, FIS-Instituto de Salud CarlosIII, Fondos Europeos para el Desarrollo Regional, FEDER, grant numbers PI16/00684, PI19/01127, CPII014/00025 to ER-M. and FI14/00431 to LT-D.; the Gilead Fellowship Program (grant numbers GLD17/00299); the Red de Investigación en Sida (grant number RD16/0025/0020). ER-M. is supported by Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social of Junta de Andalucía through the Nicolás Monardes Program (C-0032/17). Research in VS-M group was supported by Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria (FIS)-Instituto de Salud CarlosIII, grant FIS (PI 17CIII/00049). Grifols partially supported work in the AIDS Research Institute IrsiCaixa. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.S

Propuesta de productos alimenticios no tradicionales de fréjol

En Ecuador existen cultivos de diversas clases de fréjol negro, pero los principales son la calima y la caraota, esta última es conocida en el país como fréjol negro, siendo muy apetecida en países como México, Brasil, Colombia y Venezuela. Ecuador produce principalmente este producto para la exportación, siendo la exportación de este producto realizada al mercado europeo. La demanda en el mercado europeo se ha incrementado, principalmente por el valor que los consumidores de este mercado brindan a su valor nutritivo, ya que este producto contiene carbohidratos, proteínas, vitaminas A y B, calcio, magnesio, fósforo, potasio, entre otros. Actualmente, dado el mayor volumen y difusión de estudios científicos, por ejemplo el de la Organización Mundial de la Salud sobre el potencial peligro para la salud debido al consumo de embutidos y carne roja, el consumidor está demandando mayor variedad de productos que puedan ser nutritivos y a la vez deliciosos, por lo cual, siendo el fréjol negro rico en proteínas y nutrientes se convierte en una alternativa ideal, cuyo mercado se expande incluso a aquellos consumidores con necesidades especiales, y que demandan productos sin gluten ni lactosa, por lo que la apuesta a ofrecer productos derivados del fréjol negro, como harinas, galletas y derivados saludables (sin azúcar, integrales, bajas en sal o sin grasas trans) tienen una oportunidad de crecimiento a nivel interno, pero principalmente a la exportación. Palabras Clave: Cultivos, Productos Alimenticios No Tradicionales, Fréjol Negro

Chromatin regulation by Histone H4 acetylation at Lysine 16 during cell death and differentiation in the myeloid compartment

Histone H4 acetylation at Lysine 16 (H4K16ac) is a key epigenetic mark involved in gene regulation, DNA repair and chromatin remodeling, and though it is known to be essential for embryonic development, its role during adult life is still poorly understood. Here we show that this lysine is massively hyperacetylated in peripheral neutrophils. Genome-wide mapping of H4K16ac in terminally differentiated blood cells, along with functional experiments, supported a role for this histone post-translational modification in the regulation of cell differentiation and apoptosis in the hematopoietic system. Furthermore, in neutrophils, H4K16ac was enriched at specific DNA repeats. These DNA regions presented an accessible chromatin conformation and were associated with the cleavage sites that generate the 50 kb DNA fragments during the first stages of programmed cell death. Our results thus suggest that H4K16ac plays a dual role in myeloid cells as it not only regulates differentiation and apoptosis, but it also exhibits a non-canonical structural role in poising chromatin for cleavage at an early stage of neutrophil cell death

Mitochondria function associated genes contribute to Parkinson's Disease risk and later age at onset

Mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in the etiology of monogenic Parkinson’s disease (PD). Yet the role that mitochondrial processes play in the most common form of the disease; sporadic PD, is yet to be fully established. Here, we comprehensively assessed the role of mitochondrial function-associated genes in sporadic PD by leveraging improvements in the scale and analysis of PD GWAS data with recent advances in our understanding of the genetics of mitochondrial disease. We calculated a mitochondrial-specific polygenic risk score (PRS) and showed that cumulative small effect variants within both our primary and secondary gene lists are significantly associated with increased PD risk. We further reported that the PRS of the secondary mitochondrial gene list was significantly associated with later age at onset. Finally, to identify possible functional genomic associations we implemented Mendelian randomization, which showed that 14 of these mitochondrial functionassociated genes showed functional consequence associated with PD risk. Further analysis suggested that the 14 identified genes are not only involved in mitophagy, but implicate new mitochondrial processes. Our data suggests that therapeutics targeting mitochondrial bioenergetics and proteostasis pathways distinct from mitophagy could be beneficial to treating the early stage of PD