Carbon and water footprints in Brazilian coffee plantations - the spatial and temporal distribution

The future of many coffee growing regions, such as Brazil, depends on strategies to allow the minimization of the negative impacts of climate change. Still the own contribution of coffee cultivation for global warming is largely unknown. Water and carbon footprints are concepts that indicate the potential negative impact of a specific product, underlining which part of the process is the major responsible for it. In this context, the objective of this study was to quantify and spatialize the water and carbon footprints from coffee crop in different regions of Brazil, and to find the proportional weight of coffee production in the total emission of CO2 and water consumption in the context of Brazilian agriculture. For this end, water and carbon footprints were estimated and spatialized for Brazilian regions along 10 productive seasons (from 2004/2005 to 2014/2015), based on data of plantation area (ha) and coffee production (tons of beans). It is concluded that the estimates of annual carbon and water footprints were 19.791 million t CO2-equivalent and 49,284 million m3 of water, with higher values from the Southeast region. This corresponded to a moderate (ca. 5%) value for the emissions of greenhouse gases, but a relevant water footprint in the context of Brazilian agricultureinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.: A Multi-Benefit Potential to Be Exploited

This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Sustainability: Promising By-Products for ValorizationConsumer interest in foods with enhanced nutritional quality has increased in recent years. The nutritional and bioactive characterization of fruits and their byproducts, as well as their use in the formulation of new food products, is advisable, contributing to decrease the global concerns related to food waste and food security. Moreover, the compounds present in these raw materials and the study of their biological properties can promote health and help to prevent some chronic diseases. Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill. (prickly pear) is a plant that grows wild in the arid and semi-arid regions of the world, being a food source for ones and a potential for others, but not properly valued. This paper carries out an exhaustive review of the scientific literature on the nutritional composition and bioactive compounds of prickly pear and its constituents, as well as its main biological activities and applications. It is a good source of dietary fiber, vitamins and bioactive compounds. Many of its natural compounds have interesting biological activities such as anti-inflammatory, hypoglycemic and antimicrobial. The antioxidant power of prickly pear makes it a good candidate as an ingredient of new food products with fascinating properties for health promotion and/or to be used as natural extracts for food, pharmaceutic or cosmetic applications. In addition, it could be a key player in food security in many arid and semi-arid regions of the world, where there are often no more plants.This work was funded by INSA, I.P., under the BioCOMP (Reference number 2012DAN730) and by European Union (FEDER funds through COMPETE), under the Partnership Agreement PT2020, and National Funds (FCT, Foundation for Science and Technology), through project UIDB/50006/2020, and AgriFood XXI I&D&I project (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000041) cofinanced by European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the NORTE 2020 (Programa Operacional Regional do Norte 2014/2020).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Tribocorrosion behavior of CoCrMo alloy for hip prosthesis as a function of loads: A comparison between two testing systems

Metal-on-metal (MOM) hip prosthesis bearings have enjoyed renewed popularity, but concerns remain with wear debris and metal ion release causing a negative response in the surrounding tissues. Further understanding into the wear and corrosion mechanisms occurring in MOM hips is therefore essential. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the tribocorrosion behavior, or interplay between corrosion and wear, of a low-carbon CoCrMo alloy as a function of loading. The tribocorrosion tests were performed using two tribometer configurations. In the first configuration, “System A”, a linearly reciprocating alumina ball slid against the flat metal immersed in a phosphate buffer solution (PBS). In the second configuration, “System B”, the flat end of a cylindrical metal pin was pressed against an alumina ball that oscillated rotationally, using bovine calf serum (BCS) as the lubricant and electrolyte. System B was custom-built to emulate in vivo conditions. The tribocorrosion tests were performed under potentiostatic conditions at −0.345 V, with a sliding duration of 1800 s and a frequency of 1 Hz. In System A the applied loads were 0.05, 0.5, and 1 N (138, 296 and 373 MPa, respectively) and in System B were 16, 32, and 64 N (474, 597, and 752 MPa, respectively). Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and polarization resistance were estimated. The total mass loss (Kwc) in the CoCrMo was determined. The mass loss due to wear (Kw) and that due to corrosion (Kc) were determined. The dominant wear regime for the CoCrMo alloy subjected to sliding changes from wear–corrosion to mechanical wear as the contact stress increases. An attempt was made to compare both system, in their tribochemical responses and formulate some insights in the total degradation processes. Our results also suggest that the proteins in the serum lubricant assist in the generation of a protective layer against corrosion during sliding. The study highlights the need of adequate methodology/guidelines to compare the results from different test systems and translating in solving the practical problems

Implicações da origem das linhagens de feijoeiro na magnitude da interação com ambientes

O objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar as implicações da origem de linhagens de feijão na magnitude da interação com ambientes e os fatores ambientais que mais contribuem para esta interação. Foram utilizados dados dos experimentos de valor de cultivo e uso, conduzidos em Lavras e Viçosa, MG, nos biênios 2002/2003, 2005/2006 e 2007/2008, nas safras de cultivo das águas, seca e inverno. Foram avaliadas linhagens da Universidade Federal de Lavras, da Universidade Federal de Viçosa e da Embrapa. Os dados de produtividade de grãos foram submetidos a análises de variância por ambiente e análises conjuntas por biênio, para cada local e para os dois locais em conjunto. Foram estimados os coeficientes de determinação de cada fonte de variação, e foram realizadas análises de estabilidade por meio das estimativas de ecovalência. As interações que envolveram as linhagens tiveram pequena participação na variação total nos três biênios. Apesar de ter havido significância das interações genótipo x local quanto à variação total, sua magnitude não foi expressiva. O local de origem não influencia a estabilidade das linhagens quando as suas condições ambientais são semelhantes às do local de cultivo, mas interfere no desempenho das linhagens quando as condições ambientais são muito diferentes

A review of angular leaf spot resistance in common bean.

Angular leaf spot (ALS), caused by Pseudocer-cospora griseola, is one of the most devastating diseases of common bean (Phaseolus vulgarisL.) in tropical and subtropical production areas. Breeding for ALS resistance is difficult due to the extensive virulence diversity of P. griseolaand the recurrent appearance of new virulent races. Five major loci, Phg-1 to Phg-5, confer-ring ALS resistance have been named, and markers tightly linked to these loci have been reported. Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) have also been described, but the validation of some QTLs is still pending. The Phg-1, Phg-4, and Phg-5loci are from common bean cultivars of the Andean gene pool, whereas Phg-2 and Phg-3are from beans of the Mesoamerican gene pool. The reference genome of common bean and high-throughput sequencing technologies are enabling the development of molecular markers closely linked to the Phg loci, more accurate mapping of the resistance loci, and the compar-ison of their genomic positions. The objective of this report is to provide a comprehensive review of ALS resistance in common bean. Further-more, we are reporting three case studies of ALS resistance breeding in Latin America and Africa. This review will serve as a reference for future resistance mapping studies and as a guide for the selection of resistance loci in breeding programs aiming to develop common bean cultivars with durable ALS resistance